Lost Chances
by vflmaeuschen
Summary: Shinichi feels like this is his very last chance, and that he'll regret it if he misses it. So he has to take it, no matter if it will kill him or not. And Heiji... He doesn't realize how many chances he missed until Kazuha is tired of giving them to him. -Hiatus-
1. Chapter 1

A.N.: Hey everyone :-) Welcome to this story. If you're interested, here is the banner to it: /2xva8s (just add the rest of the html to the twitpic html ;))  
Even though I only put Heiji and Kazuha as the leading characters of the story, Shinichi and Ran will be main characters, too. The site will only let me submit 2 characters, though, so  
I decided Kazuha and Heiji are more important.  
I hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoy writing it :-D This is my first Detective Conan fanfiction, so I hope you'll like it! Please leave reviews if you read it, they would  
save my days :-D  
Now, on to the first chapter. If you read between the lines, it already includes all the important story lines ;) Can you find them?

chance (chns)

_noun_

**1. ** An accidental or unpredictable event.

**2. ** A favorable set of circumstances; an opportunity: a chance to escape.

**3. ** A risk or hazard; a gamble: took a chance that the ice would hold me.

Chapter 1

_12:16 p.m., Sunday, July 21st, Ōsaka, Hattori Mansion_

_Heiji's POV_

"You found WHAT?" I almost yelled, accidentally slipping on the pen I had let fall to the floor earlier during the hunt for my phone when Kudou had called. I could hold myself on my feet with the help of the back of my chair that I had gripped, but a curse slipped my lips, alerting Kudou to my clumsiness.

"I told you to sit down" Kudou answered with a bored voice, and I rolled my eyes.

"Shut up and repeat what you just said!" I demanded, steadying myself again carefully.

"How many times do you want to hear it, Hattori? We think we found the head quarters of the black clothed organization. At least the temporary one."

"Are you sure?" I asked, still stunned by the news.

"Quite. We've been watching them for quite some time now… They haven't noticed us, of course, but I think we are trying our luck with any day we wait."

"Wait for what?" I asked stupidly, though I already knew the answer.

"To invite them to tea, Hattori. Maybe they'll give me the recipe for the APTX 4869 as a gift if I make friends with them!" he replied, sarcasm dripping from his voice. I ignored his taunt.

"So you are going to break into their head quarters?" I asked incredulous. "Have you gone mad?"

"What am I supposed to do?" Kudou answered. "This may be the only chance I'll get for a long time!"

I caught my breath, trying to organize my thoughts. I knew he was right, of course, but breaking into the head quarters of a criminal organization qho considered you dead… it seemed like pure suicid to me.

I was kept from answering though by my door bursting open, and a cheerfull call of my name by a far too familiar voice.

"Heiji!" Kazuha called, walking into my room as if it was her own. "Are you free today? I am _so _in the mood for an ice cream, and so I thought we could try out this new place that has opened around the corner of-"

I rolled my eyes, murmuring a short "Wait a sec" to Kudou before turning to Kazuha.

"Have you ever heard of knocking?" I snapped, glaring at her.

Kazuha blinked in surprise at my harsh voice.

"Your Mum said to just go upstairs" she said in a small voice.

"Oh, well, if my _Mum_ said it" I groaned. "I don't need privacy, do I?"

"Well, anyways, are you free or not?" she asked, a frown building on her forehead as she leaned against my doorframe, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"No!" I snapped, pointing at my phone. "As it is, I'm busy!"

"Well, you won't hang on the phone for the whole afternoon, will you?" she shrugged, her eyes narrowing. "Who are you talking to, anyway?"

"That's none of your business!" I groaned.

"Wow, sorry, I didn't know you had secrets from me!" she nagged.

"I'm not having secrets, you are just way too intrusive!" I returned, raising my voice slightly in annoyance. "Now, would you please leave me alone, ahou, this is more important than your craving for sweets!"

"Fine!" she yelled, clearly angry now. "I'd better leave you alone from now on if I just keep annoying you!"

"Yeah, you'd better!" I yelled back, turning around to ignore her, returning the phone to my ear. I waited until I heard the door fall shut behind Kazuha though until I started to speak again.

"Sorry, it was just Kazuha, intruding as always" I murmured.

"I figured" Kudou returned drily. "Anyways, I don't have much time. Ran will be returning any moment."

"Listen, don't do anything rash, okay?" I advised. "Wait for another week or something! It's almost summer holidays, and I can come to Tokyo then!"

"It could be too late in a week!" he reminded me.

"It won't" I ensured him, though I had no clue if I was right or not. "Just wait, okay?"

"For what?" he demanded.

"For me, duh!" I answered. "You think I'm gonna let you risk your life alone, idiot? You're gonna die out there without me, knowing you!"

"Haha" Kudou returned drily, before he gasped. "Ran's home, I gotta go. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Wait! Kudou!" I called, but he had already hung up. "Dang!" I cursed, throwing the phone onto my bed.

This was not good. Not good at all.

_12:21 h, Ōsaka, on the way to the Toyama mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

"Heiji, stupid ahou" I murmured to myself, trying to fight the tears that threatened to come, but I wouldn't let them spill. After all, it was not the first time that he had snapped at me like this without any obvious reason.

Sometimes, I wondered why exactly it was that I loved him so much. It was not like he was ever particularly nice to me. Most of the time, he treated me like a nasty fly or something, only crawling back to me when he noticed I was seriously mad.

I was sick of it, so sick. Every time he pushed me away, I felt another part of my heart shattering into pieces, and I just couldn't take it anymore.

But it was not like I could do anything against my feelings, really. It was like every time I was about to set my mind on giving him up, I was reminded again of why I liked him so much in the first place – his sharp mind, the soft side underneath his cool façade… Those moments when it _almost_ seemed like deep inside, he was returning my feelings…

But he never did. He always had a way of ruining any hint of a _moment_ we could ever have. There was no trace of romance between us most of the time, and it was surely not my fault that there wasn't.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid" I repeated to myself before running into somebody. "Sorry!" I said hastily, blushing as I looked up. How come Heiji had my mind so occupied that I didn't even watch where I was going? This was surely not healthy.

I let out a surprised gasp as I looked into a familiar face.

"Ryou?" I called, taking a step back to look into his face.

Ryou was a new student in our class. He had moved here from Hokkaido a few months ago. He was a rather nice guy, and quite handsome, as I once again noticed as I studied the sharp contures of his face, his half long dark hair and his grey eyes. Half of the girls had been after him the moment he had arrived in our school, but he always seemed to keep a distance from everyone. I had always wondered why. Maybe he was just that introvert.

"Kazuha" he said, smiling at me. "What a coincidence"

"Yeah" I chuckled, still embarrassed about my own clumsiness. "Where are you headed to?" I asked politely, trying to make conversation.

"Nowhere in particular" he shrugged. "I was just bringing a letter to the mailbox. And you? Is everything alright?" he added in an afterthought, observing my face more closely. "You look-"

"Angry?" I finished his sentence, rolling my eyes at the memory of Heiji's behaviour towards me. "You can bet on that."

"I was going to say sad" he answered, still observing me with an interest as if he was reading a book. I gulped, looking down. I had the strange feeling that he could look right through me. "Care to talk about it?"

I looked up, surprised. Sure, Ryou had always been nice to me, but it was not like we were close friends or anything, so his caring attitude took me quite off guard. But at the same time, it kind of touched me… How many times had I wished for Heiji to take a closer interest in my moods and problems?

"Um, it's not important, really…" I murmured in a small voice. "But thanks for asking."

"Come on, I'm sure it's important" he frowned. "I can see it's bothering you a lot!"

"Well…" I whispered, not sure what to answer. I was sure this guy didn't want to hear about my feelings for Heiji.

"You know what? A new ice cream place opened last week, just around the corner" Ryou said suddenly. "Why don't I treat you to a cup and you tell me whatever it is that's occupying your mind. Sometimes just talking about it helps."

I was slightly overwhelmed by his consistency. No one had ever cared so much for my problems before… Well, maybe Ran, but surely no guy. Not even Heiji.

Above all not Heiji.

"Come on" Ryou smiled. He had a beautiful smile, I noticed once again. Sometimes, when I looked at him, I felt like I was part of some soap. He was handsome enough to be on TV, at least. "I don't bite."

I couldn't help but smile back. Well, it couldn't hurt, could it? After all, Heiji didn't want to go with me, and I really craved for some ice cream… Though I had more craved for Heiji's company, of course. Not that he would ever understand that.

"Actually" I finally said. "Ice cream sounds perfect."

_12:19 h, Tokyo, Mouri appartment_

_Shinichi's POV_

"Ran's home, I gotta go." I hastily whispered into the hearer as I heard the clicking of the door lock across the room. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Wait! Kudou!" I heard Hattori shout, but I quickly hung up, spinning around to smile innocently, quickly letting my phone slip into my pocket.

The door opened all the way, and Ran entered the appartment, animatedly chatting with Sonoko.

"Will you just stop it?" Ran pleaded in embarrassment before she noticed me. "Oh, hi, Conan!"

"Hello, Ran-nee-chan!" I answered , trying to smile convincingly. Sonoko ignored me though, just talking on.

"So you're gonna tell me you'll turn 18 in about a week and your future husband won't even be able to make it home for that day?" she demanded. "Now, that's low, if you ask me.

My smile faded slightly, and I awkwardly bent down to rummage through my school things to not seem to involved in their conversation.

"He's busy with his cases" Ran shrugged, but I could see in her eyes that though she acted uninvolved on the outside, the fact that I wouldn't be there for her birthday deeply saddened her.

"Well, what's more important, you or his cases?" Sonoko demanded. "I think he's being rather unfair. How long are you supposed to be waiting for him? If I were you, I'd just test the waters, you know. Other mothers also have pretty sons."

"Sonoko" Ran sighed.

"Well, it's true!" she belowed as she followed Ran out of the room.

As they were gone, I sighed to myself.

"_This_" I murmured to myself, "is why I cannot risk to miss this chance, Hattori. I can't wait any longer."

A.N.: Sooooo... Did you like it? :-) Please leave a review and tell me, I'm dying for your opinions.  
Oh, and if you're interested in story news of me, follow me on twitter - vflmaeuschenFF :-) I'll tweet every time I update any of my stories.


	2. Chapter 2

A.N.: Firstly, thanks to everyone who reviewed the first chapter :-D I was thrilled to wake up to all those reviews, and I'm really glad that this story is being accepted so well. 3 I was scared of a lack of reviews because I'm new to this homepage, but I'm glad to see I was wrong :-)  
I updated especially fast this time only for my equally-as-crazy-for-Heiji-as-me-friend Iyami :-D So you have her to thank.  
Now, onto the chapter. We're starting off where we left in the last chapter, with Kazuha and her classmate Ryou :)

Chapter 2

_12:41p.m., Sunday, July 21st, Ōsaka, Giovanni's ice cream parlour_

_Kazuha's POV_

"There you go" Ryou smiled, giving my strawberry cup to me.

"You know" I murmured, frowning slightly. "I could have payed that for myself…"

"My Mum raised me to be a gentleman, so humor me" he laughed, and I sighed, giving in. We crossed the room until we found an empty table to sit down at.

I began eating my ice cream in silence, feeling at a slight loss for words. I was still wondering how it exactly it had happened that I sat here with Ryou, letting him treat me to ice cream. I felt likw things were happening without any influence from my side, and I couldn't help but just going with the flow. Maybe it was Ryou's charm?

"So" Ryou spoke up, still smiling. "Tell me what's on your mind. I'm all ear."

I hesitated, taking especially long to gulp down the bit of ice cream in my mouth.

"I told you, it's nothing really" I murmured. "I doubt you'd want to hear about it."

"Let me guess? Hattori?" he asked, his expression knowing.

I blushed. Was I really that obvious (read pathetic) that a guy who had met me just a few months ago in school could already tell my feelings?

Even worse, if he could, why couldn't Heiji, that ahou?

"What did he do?" he asked, observing my face so openly that it embarrassed me. "You really can tell me, I won't write it into the newspaper, you know."

"But maybe in the school's newspaper" I joked, and he chuckled.

"Everything that's being said now stays between us, I swear" he promised.

I smiled, finally surrendering. It was like I had no other choice but surrendering to him. Maybe it was his consistency, or his caring manner. It had me defenseless.

"It's not something he did, really" I answered at last, my eyes focusing the strawberry I was pushing back and forth in my cup. "It's just his general manner that's bothering me."

"I guess I know what you mean" he sighed, finally more serious.

"You do?" I asked, surprised.

"Please, Kazuha, it's not really hard to tell what you feel for him. I guess the whole school is aware of it" I blushed profusely at his words, and he quickly added. "Well, everyone but Hattori, so don't worry."

"This is not the kind of conversation I ever wanted to have" I admitted, and he chuckled.

"Sorry, the last thing I want is to embarrass you, it's just… " he sighed, looking into my eyes before continuing, "every time I see the way he acts towards you, I… it just bothers me. Even makes me a little mad."

I frowned, looking at him in perplexion. Not for the first time today, I might add.

"Why?" I asked straight out.

"Because I think you deserve better" he answered. "A guy as lucky as Hattori should… worship the ground you walk on. That means" he added, a slight blush forming on his cheeks, "I would, if I were him."

I was speechless at his words. Nobody had ever said anything like this to me, and I didn't quite process what it meant. Ryou used my shocked silence to talk on.

"You are a very special girl, Kazuha" Ryou said, smiling again, his eyes having a tender look in them as he looked at me. "You always say exactly what you mean, never holding back, and I like that a lot. You are beautiful, but you don't even realize it, and I find that adorable. I like that you're not such a helpless kind of girl – you stand your ground, you never let people push you around… Only your obsession for Hattori doesn't fit that image. I wish you wouldn't let him walk all over your heart all the time."

Ryou made a short break then, waiting for me to return anything, but I was still unable to speak.

"I know you don't return my feelings" Ryou said finally, looking down for a moment before meeting my eyes again. "But I still wanted you to know that I like you, and that you've caught my eye the very first day on your school. You are wonderful, Kazuha, and I thought if Hattori doesn't tell you that day by day… maybe someone else should."

I let out a shaky breath, still too stunned to speak. It was like my mind was working in slow motion. Ryou… liked me? How could that have happened? He barely knew me, did he? Did the mean he really had watched my every move in school all those months without me ever noticing it…?

Well, how could I have noticed?, I scolded myself inwardly. All my focus had been on Heiji, it was not like I could have ever noticed any other guys.

"Don't worry" Ryou said, obviously turning slightly nervous because I still hadn't said anything. "I don't expect any answer from you. I know you like Hattori and it's not like I expect you to go out with me now or anything, I just… wanted you to know… that…" he took a deep breath before concluding "if you ever have enough of Hattori's inconsiderate behaviour… I am here, you know. Maybe I could make you forget him. And I _would_ treat you better than he does, I can promise you that much."

"I have no doubt of that" I murmured. "It's not really hard."

"Let's not talk about this anymore" he sighed, returning his attention to his ice cream cup. "Just remember what I said, and we'll change the subject now."

"Uhuh" I just nodded, but I was kept from saying anything else by my phone blowing off. I hastily rummaged in my bag until I found it. Reading the caller ID on the display, though, I hesitated.

It was Heiji.

"Let me guess" Ryou smiled sadly. "Hattori?"

"Yes" I answered in a small voice.

"Go ahead" he shrugged. "Take it."

I hesitated for another second or two before I rejected his call. Ryou frowned at me, raising an eyebrow in question.

"I'm just in no mood to talk to him" I answered, laying the phone down on the table in front of me. Only a few seconds later, I received a message from Heiji. I rolled my eyes before reading it.

"_Ahou, are you still mad at me about earlier?_" he wrote. _"I'm sorry, that phone call was important, but I'm free now. Where are you? I tried to call your house about a dozen times. Go ahead and pick up!"_

"Ahou" I groaned. "There he goes again, thinking I'm sitting at home sulking because he didn't have time for me, and when he has, he expects me to stand in attention!"

"Well, just don't, and maybe he'll understand that he can't push you around you like that?" Ryou suggested with a crooked smile. "I'm free for the rest of the day, anyways" he hinted.

I couldn't help but smile.

"You know what?" I chuckled, letting the phone fall back into my purse. "You're right. Let's do something fun."

Ryou, in return, grinned as if he was still 5 years old and I had just told him Christmas would be celebrated in July as well this year. It made me feel all warm and content inside. Ryou was a nice guy – why was I not supposed to have a little fun with him?

_13:32 p.m._, _Ōsaka, Hattori mansion_

I groaned after I had stared at my phone for about 20 minutes, waiting for an answer from Kazuha, but nothing. Was she still sulking? Fine with me, it was not like I was depended on her. I could spend a fun Sunday afternoon without her company as well.

I spinned around in my office chair, trying to come up with anything I wanted to do. Quickly, I gave up from lack of ideas and motivation, sighing in frustration.

"My life is boring" I concluded.

A.N.: Well, Heiji has gotten competition, and that without his knowledge ;) Thoughts about that? Please review and tell me, I'm dying to hear what you think about this :-D


	3. Chapter 3

A.N.: Hey everyone :-D So, here comes the next chapter - and I promise that with this one, everything begins to roll for Heiji and Kazuha ;)

Chapter 3

_8:28 a.m., Monday, July 22nd, Ōsaka, in front of the Hattori Mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

I stood in front of Heiji's family's house again, impatiently watching the arms of my wrist watch move. He was late. _Again._ Sometimes I wondered why I still went to school with him every morning. One of these days, we would arrive late because of him.

Don't ask me why I was even here again right now. It was not like I wasn't still mad at him, because I was.

With a hint of a bad conscience, I remembered Ryou's words from yesterday.

"_I wish you wouldn't let him walk all over your heart all the time."_

The rest of the day with Ryou had turned out to be a lot of fun. Ryou listened to the same kind of music I did (the kind that Heiji made jokes about), and in general, we had a lot in common. It was easy to talk to him, and I figured that he was someone I could become good friends with.

After he had treated me to the ice cream, we went to grab something for dinner, too. This time, I didn't let him pay for me, but he still managed to be the perfect gentleman, somehow, drawing out my chair for me, taking my jacket and even bringing me home at the end of the day. Doing all the things that I wished Heiji would do for me now and then.

But on the other hand, I couldn't even imagine Heiji being all gentlemanly all of a sudden. That was just not him, as much as I wished it was. He was the type of guy to be late and somehow still manage to yell at you and turn it around to give you all the blame.

Just as I thought this, the front door opened, and Heiji appeared, looking as much at ease as he did every morning. I crossed my arms in front of my chest, glaring into his direction.

"Look at that face" Heiji rolled his eyes as he reached me. "Let me guess – you're still sulking because of yesterday?"

"Duh" I snapped, beginning to walk, and he followed me.

"I apologized, didn't I?" Heiji groaned. "Now would you please forget about it?"

"This is not about yesterday!" I called, staring straight ahead, even as he caught up with me.

"Well, then what IS it about?" he asked, exasperated.

"This is about you pushing me around all the time, and I'm so sick of it!" I yelled, all the built up anger releasing at once.

"Wow, put it on pause" Heiji returned, taken aback. "When am I ever pushing you around?"

"Every freaking minute of every freaking day!" I yelled, turning to him.

"Keep it down!" Heiji advised. "You are totally hysteric!"

"SEE?" I shouted, pointing at him. "This is exactly what I mean! Instead of caring for my problems, you are calling me crazy!"

"I was not calling you crazy!" Heiji defended himself. "Though you sure act like it!"

"You know what? I don't need this!" I informed him. "There are other people out there who would love to spend their time with me without yelling every second sentence, _especially_ guys!"

"What are you even talking about?" Heiji demanded.

"If you still don't understand that" I snapped, turning away from him. "I can't help you, either!"

With that, I marched off, leaving a stunned Heiji behind.

_Heiji's POV_

I watched Kazuha disappear, feeling more than a little confused. I had no idea what she was talking about.

What was all that nonsense about pushing her around? I mean, sure, Kazuha and I were bickering from time to time, but that had always been this way. Why did it suddenly bother her?

And yesterday… My thoughts had simply been else where. I mean, one of my best friends may or may not be about to run into his own death, wasn't it understandable that my thought were with Kudou in that very moment?

Well, not that she knew that, of course, but that was still no reason to freak out about it like that.

And what did she mean by there being other people wanting to spend time with her, _especially_ guys?

My mind was spinning as I continued my way to school. I was sure to be late now, but somehow, this was my last worry right now.

_8:36 a.m., Ōsaka, Kaihou High School_

_Kazuha's POV_

When I entered the classroom a few minutes later, it was like I could see clearly for the first time.

I had come to the conclusion that Ryou was right. It was even sad that I needed him to open my eyes. I should have seen the light ages ago.

I was not going to run after Heiji any longer. Childhood friend or not childhood friend, everything had borders, and Heiji had passed his border way too often lately. I was through with him. I was not going to wait for him to grow up.

Not when I had a nice guy who actually _cared_ for my feelings.

"Kazuha?" I heard a familiar voice bring me back to reality. I turned around, looking into Ryou's grey eyes. "Are you alright?" he asked, observing my face worriedly. "You seem… not quite like yourself."

"I've never been better" I declared. "Actually, you're just the person I need to talk to!"

"Okay" he answered, blinking in confusion. "Shoot"

"When you told me that if I decided to give up Heiji, you would be there… Did you mean it?" I asked, wanting to make sure.

"Of course" he nodded.

"Well, this is the moment" I declared. "And your chance. Ask me out."

Ryou looked at me as if I had gone insane. I waited patiently for him to pull himself together, before he asked: "Are you serious?"

"I don't think I've ever been that serious about anything" I ensured him. And miraculously, I really meant it.

"Alright, so… Kazuha, will you go out with me?" he asked, his voice still hesitant. I had to smile about his insecurity.

"Yes" I smirked. "I'd love to."

Suck that, Heiji.

A.N.: Duduuuuum :-P There, it happened. What do you say? Thoughts? Yells? Crying fits? PLEASE tell them to me, I'm dying to know what you think (and I mean what you think - please, if you like it, tell me what exactly you like ;) I'd also love constructive criticism. Only tell me more than "Good. Continue.", because, though I love every review of course, those 2 words don't tell me a lot about what you think ;)).

Again, thanks to everyone who supported my story until now. I love you all!


	4. Chapter 4

A.N.: Hey everyone! Thanks so much for all those AMAZING reviews, you should have seen the smile on my face as I read them! :-D Please keep them coming!  
Now, onto the next chapter. We're taking off where we left in the last one, with a Kazuha who had enough, and a confused Heiji ;)

Chapter 4

_8:45 a.m., Monday, July 22nd, Ōsaka, Kaihou High School_

_Heiji's POV_

I had never arrived in a school this quiet before. It was amazing how everything seemed so quiet when class had already started.

I knew I was late, but I still couldn't bring myself to hurry. One or two minutes more, what did it matter? I had greater worries now.

For example that Kazuha's words were currently on repeat in my head, as if it was one of the stupid love songs she was always listening to. It just wouldn't leave my mind, and it was freaking me out. I couldn't even think.

Besides, I couldn't shrug off the feeling that something was very wrong. And when I say _very_, I mean it. I couldn't explain it to myself – Kazuha and I had argued at least a thousand times, and it never had changed a thing… But this time felt different.

I felt like I was missing something important. Like I was investigating a case, and I knew that I had overlooked something, the one detail that I needed to make sense out of everything, but I just couldn't find it.

And it always drove me crazy if I couldn't make sense out of something. Though it felt like whenever that happened. Kazuha was involved. Maybe this was why she always had me on edge.

I finally arrived in front of the door to our classroom. I could hear the teacher talking inside, but still, the trace of bad conscience that was supposed to appear when you knew you did something wrong just wouldn't make itself known. So I just grabbed the doorknob, opening the door.

The teacher fell silent when I entered the class room, needing a moment to change his professional manner to one of anger.

"Hattori-Kun, yu are late!"

"I noticed" I returned drily, but before he could start to yell, I added: "I'm very sorry, Kawashima-Sensei, it won't happen again!"

"I hope so for you" he murmured, before he nodded for me to sit down. As I crossed the classroom towards my table, he was already talking on.

I sat down quietly, my eyes immediately drifting over to my neighbour's table. Kazuha was pointedly ignoring me, acting as if she was fully concentrated on the teacher's words, but I could tell she was not even listening. She was absentmindedly clicking with her ballpoint pen, a nervous habit of hers, showing whenever she was lying, or hiding something.

"Kazuha" I whispered, trying to catch her attention, but she didn't even blink. "Kazuha!" I tried again, this time a little louder. "Ahou, I'm talking to you!"

"Hattori-Kun!" the teacher said loudly, catching my attention. "First, you're coming late, then, you're interrupting our class. If you're in no mood to be here, you can go right to the principal's office!"

"I'm sorry" I apologized again, trying to quickly come up with an excuse. "I just… noticed that I've forgotten a pen and wanted to ask Kazuha to lend me one!"

The teacher rolled his eyes at me.

"Toyama-San, give him that damned pen so we can continue!"

Kazuha glared before throwing her pen over to my table with a little too much force. I swear, had her throw been a little more precise, she would have nailed my hand to the table with it's force.

I didn't try again to speak to Kazuha during class. Maybe it was better to let her cool off, anyways. She tended to be irrational when she was mad.

Still, it felt like the class wouldn't pass. I tried to listen to the teacher (at least some of the time), I really did, but it felt like I just couldn't set my mind on it. All I could do was stare at the clock's arms to move until the bell rang and I could finally talk to Kazuha.

When it finally did, I immediately jumped up, being over at Kazuha's table at the speed of lightning.

When she saw me standing in front of her, she just glared at me, holding out her hand pointedly.

"My pen, please" she said straight out. I gave it to her, saying as quiet as I could to not attract any more attention (I already felt like the whole class had been watching me since I entered the classroom): "Kazuha, let's talk."

"I don't have anything to say to you" she returned coldly, putting her pen away neatly.

"Don't be so stubborn, okay?" I sighed. "I told you I'm sorry, what else do you want to- HEY!" I called as she was turning her back to me while I was still talking. "KAZUHA!"

I reached for her shoulder to hold her back, but she shrugged my hand off, turning around to me furiously.

"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE, WILL YOU?" she screamed. "I am through with you, Heiji, okay?"

"Through with me?" I repeated, flabberghasted.

"Yes, you heard right!" she groaned. "I've had enough, and I don't want to have anything to do with you ever again!"

I was too stunned to answer as her words slowly began to sank in. But instead of having the mercy to pause for me to catch up, she just continued, every word hitting me as if she was slapping me right in the face.

"I've pulled up with this sick, twisted friendship long enough, and really, I can't stand it any more! Just leave me alone and don't talk to me again. Besides" she added, throwing a nasty smile at me, almost as if she wanted to provoke me with her next words, "I'm dating Ryou now, and I won't make him jealous with your company."

The last one felt like a punch right into my stomach. Or maybe even a bullet.

As I tried to remember how to breathe, Fujiwara slowly walked up behind Kazuha, as of he was not sure if his company was wanted or not. My eyes focused on him, and I felt a fire burn through the numbness of my body.

Ryou Fujiwara. He had come to our school only a few months ago, and I'd always considered him a rather nice guy. It's not like I had talked to him a lot, but I had come across him now and then in the Kendo Club, of which he was also a part, and I had never had anything against him.

So it was quite astonishing how I could suddenly hate him with all I had. I balled my fist, trying to fight the urge to punch right into his pretty face.

"Kazuha?" Fujiwara murmured, catching Kazuha's attention. "I'll just wait outside until you're done, okay?" He flashed a short look at me, but didn't meet my eyes, instead looking down as if he was embarrassed of what was happening in this classroom.

"No, don't. I'm done here" Kazuha spat towards me, glaring into my direction a last time before demonstratively linking arms with Fuijiwara and walking away from me. Fujiwara threw one last tentative look at me over the shoulder before disappearing out of the door with her.

I just stood there, trying hard to understand what exactly had just happened.

_Kazuha's POV_

I felt my hands shaking slightly as I walked away from Heiji. The look in his eyes… It was one I had never seen before, and it was like it was burning right through me. I tried to shake it off, though.

Finally, I had done the right thing. I had shown Heiji that I was independend, and that he couldn't treat me the way he did. Ryou was right, I deserved better, and I was not going to play the victim any longer.

I let go of Ryou's arm, hoping he didn't notice that I was shaking. I flashed him a smile, but he didn't return it. Instead, he observed my face with worry in his eyes.

"Are you… alright, Kazuha?" he asked hesitantly. "Is that… really what you want!"

"Sure it is" I declared, my voice grim. "I should have done that way sooner!"

"Really?" he asked, raising an eyebrow as if he was doubting my words.

"What is it with you?" I murmured, frowning at him. "Isn't that what you wanted? You told me o not let myself being pushed around any longer, and here I am, doing just what you wanted me to do!"

"It's true" he murmured, seeming slightly confused. "It's just… I never expected you to really do it. And above all, to end your whole friendship with Hattori like that… I mean, you've been friends for an eternity, haven't you?"

"Who cares about that?" I shrugged, rolling my eyes. "One great friendship it was, I really won't miss it. You finally opened my eyes, Ryou, and I have to thank you for that."

"I hope you'll still thank me for it when you've calmed down a little and realized what you just did" he said quietly, almost as if he was talking to himself rather than me.

"Believe me" I ensured him. "I will."

A.N.: Oh dear, things are not looking good :-P Thoughts? Plans to murder any of the characters (best wishes to Iyami :-P)? XD Please let me know, I'm waiting :-) Love you all!


	5. Chapter 5

A.N.: Hey, everyone :-) So, we remember Kazuha's little outburst in the last chapter... Well, and now you'll see Heiji's reaction to it :-)

Chapter 5

_16:04 p.m., Monday, July 22nd, Ōsaka, gym of the Kaihou high school_

_Heiji's POV_

I was leaning against the wall of the gym, pretending to be watching my club mates at their training, but not really seeing them. It had some advantages to be the captain of a club. At least, no one was suspicious if you were not working yourself. After all, I could have tons of reasons for watching everyone closely, for all they knew.

Though I was almost sure that each and every one knew the true reason I was in no mood to participate on the training session. Rumors traveled fast at our school, and the glances they occasionally gave me were a dead give away.

Fujiwara caught my attention then, and I focused on him, my eyes narrowing perceptively. He was the only one not staring at me every now and then. It almost seemed like he was avoiding my gaze, I noticed with some satisfaction.

Only that this small pitiful triumph didn't do anything to lift my mood at all. I had tried to keep up my façade all throughout the day, but it became more difficult with each minute that the immeasurable ammount of emotions pressed down on me, making me feel as if I couldn't breathe.

I still couldn't quite understand what had happened – all that I knew was that Kazuha hated me for reasons I couldn't get a grip of, and that she dated someone else. And every time I remembered the latter part, I felt like I was going to throw up.

"Fujiwara has become pretty good lately, hasn't he?" I heard a kouhai not far from me saying to his classmate. "I mean, he was always good, but lately…"

"I know what you mean" the other one nodded. "I bet he's already almost as good as Hattori…"

He was going to continue talking, but then he saw my face, and quickly gulped down his words, looking down. I must have looked murderous.

But apparently, I was not the only one in the room who had overheard their conversation.

"Now that you say it" someone said loudly, looking from me to Fujiwara, who had paused in his motions to look around. "Have Fujiwara and Hattori ever had a match?"

"I don't think so" someone else said, and immediately, all the eyes in the room were on me. I crossed my arms defensively, glowering at them.

"What are you looking at me like that?" I snapped at everyone.

I was met by silence and expecting glances. I felt like I was pleaded by a hord of deer in Nara who knew I had food in my pocket that I was unwilling to give to them.

"I'm not going to fight with Hattori, so just leave it" Fujiwara said loudly through the silence, and everyone's eyes turned from me to him, even my own. He had his back turned on me, seeming overly interested in the state of his wooden blade.

"Yeah" I murmured to myself, the still strangely unknown feeling of fire burning in my veines letting the words come out of my mouth by themselves. "You'd better not, for your own safety."

At that, Fujiwara looked at me over his shoulder, meeting my eyes for the first time today.

"I am surely not the one out of the two of us who has any reason to be afraid of the other" he returned, his words slow and clear.

The fire inside of me was reaching up, swallowing all of me, clouding my brain, making me unable to think.

I reached out blindly towards the person who stood nearest to me.

"Give me that damned blade" I demanded.

Everyone in the room looked as if I had just turned into Father Christmas, giving out free sweets. Well, this was probably one of the best live events this school had ever had to offer, after all. Like a real life movie. If I hadn't played the main role, I'd probably have enjoyed it, too.

I wasn't even aware I was moving towards Fujiwara until I stood only a few feet away from him, ready to fight. Everyone backed away from us, giving us the room we needed.

"We need a referee!" Someone called. "Who's gonna referee?"

For all I cared, we didn't need a referee. I was going to tear him into pieces anyways, rules or no rules.

Someone finally volunteered for the post, though, stepping in between Fujiwara and me while we attached our _men_ [head gear].

"Okay, are you ready?" he asked, looking from one to the other excitedly. Fujiwara nodded. I didn't even react, my eyes only focused on him.

"Alright, bow" the refereeing boy demanded, stepping a little to the back to not be in our way. Fujiwara oblidged. I didn't bother. "Okay, the first one with 30 points wins. Hajime [begin]!"

Fujiwara looked as if he was hesitating, and I only raised an eyebrow. The fighter with the lower grade always made the first move, after all.

Finally, Fujiwara took a deep breath and attacked. He was aiming to hit my chest, but my blade hit his, stopping his attack. In a split second, I had pushed his blade aside, attacking whatever I would hit of him first.

"10 points to Hattori!" the referee announced as ungently hit his right shoulder. Fujiwara flinched, but my satisfaction was only minimal.

I drew back unwillingly, returning to my position, waiting for the fight to be given free again.

"Hajime!" the referee shouted, and this time, I didn't wait for Fujiwara to go first – I lunged at him, totally taking him off guard – he brought his blade up to block my attack, but I was still able to hit him on the head, being sure to apply as much force as possible, but seeing as he wore protection, it was not enough to seriously hurt him.

"Again 10 points to Hattori!" the referee shouted, and I drew back, again returning to my place.

Though I was winning, it didn't feel like nearly enough. I wanted to tear him apart, to embarrass him in front of the whole school if possible. It was bad enough if he was going to stand between me and Kazuha, but did he really think he was the better fighter?

"Hajime!" was being called again, and I attacked again. This time, he was prepared, blocking my blow, fighting back. It only made me even angrier. Blade hit blade for several times, and it was as if all he did was defending. Maybe because I didn't leave him a chance to actually attack.

I went for his shoulder, and he drew back, stumbling – a mistake. Immediately, I aimed for his chest, hitting. Hard.

Fujiwara fell backwards, onto the floor, lying at my feet. His _men_ rolled away, exposing his face, looking up at me in frustration. I still had my blade drawn out to him, pointing hard into his chest, pressing him into the matts.

"Hattori wins!" the referee announced, and the crowd around us fell into a mumble. I didn't hear them, though; my eyes were focused on Fujiwara only.

"You can draw that back now" he gasped, pointing to my blade. "Fight is over, Hattori."

I held onto the blade for another moment, pushing it into him harder, sure to be painful. Then, I drew back, letting him get to his feet.

"This fight is _not_ over" I clarified as he stood in front of me, not talking about the kendo match anymore.

Fujiwara just raised an eyebrow, and before I knew it, I had drawn back my fist, and punched him into the face as hard as I could.

A loud roar went through the gym, but everything was a blurr to me. All that mattered was the pain I felt as my fist collided with his bones. I never thought pain could feel this good.

"And that" I announced as Fujiwara stumbled back from the force of my blow, holding his hand to his face. "Is a promise!"

With that, I turned around, leaving the gym straight away, heading for the dressing cabins. On the way out, our teacher passed me, observing the excitement in the group with some astonishment.

"Everything alright, Hattori-Kun?" he asked me.

"Yes, everything's perfect" I murmured in the passing.

The burning knuckles of my hand, and the emptiness inside of me, though, told another story.

A.N.: Duduuum :-P So, what do you say? Did Heiji overreact? Or are you cheering him on? :-P Please review and tell me!  
I just wanted to remind you that, though the story circles around Kazuha and Heiji at the moment, Ran and Shinichi will have their moments and chapters, too, you just need to wait for those a little longer ;)


	6. Chapter 6

A.N.: Hey, everyone! :-) Here we are again, after Heiji's little fit of rage ;) A lot of you were curious about how Kazuha would react to it. Well, here you go ;) I hope you enjoy it!

Chapter 6

_8:36 a.m, Tuesday, July 23rd, Ōsaka, Kaihou High School_

_Kazuha's POV_

I threw some books into my locker carelessly, not really being in the best of moods. I had barely slept last night. You'd think I'd sleep better now that I got rid of all my worries about Heiji, but apparently, my body didn't work like that.

"Good morning, Kazuha!" a way too happy voice said from right behind me.

I took a deep breath, trying to plaster a smile on my face before turning around. If it had been Heiji, I'd already be yelling at him about being so cheery while I felt like crawling into the next corner and sleeping till the next sunrise.

But this was Ryou, after all. He was way too nice a guy to yell at. So I tried my best to seem as chipper as him – that was, until I finally faced him, and I got a look at his face.

Or better, the bruises on his face, which had a nasty color, some mix of dark blue, violet, green, and I was sure there was some black, too,

"What HAPPENED to you?" I demanded in shock, stepping closer to have a good look at the bruise. Ryou automatically stepped back, blushing a little at my attention.

"It's nothing, really" he chuckled nervously. "No need to worry, Kazuha…"

"Are you kidding me?" I frowned. "This bruise is the size of Fujisan!"

"Don't exaggerate" he chuckled. "It's not that bad."

"What happened?" I frowned, once again observing his bad looking bruise. It didn't look like nothing. It reminded me of some bruises Heiji had gotten during his cases, and he hadn't stopped complaining about them for days afterwards. But of course, Heiji was whiny, which Ryou probably wasn't.

"Oh, you know" Ryou said airily, looking around in nervousness, as if searching for inspiration for some lie he could sell me. "I… ran into something."

"Some_thing_?" I repeated incredulous, raising an eyebrow at him. "Or some_one_?"

"Might have been the latter" he murmured, but before I could question him further, I overheard two girls talking a few feet away.

"Did you hear about it? Heiji Hattori punched Ryou Fujiwara into the face during yesterday's kendo training!" some first year told her friend excitedly, as if it was the most enlightening piece of gossip (which it probably was), while I felt like someone had emptied a bowl of icy water over my head.

"WHAT?" the other girl asked, seeming thrilled. "Oh my gosh, why?"

"Apparently, it was about this girl which is always glued to Heiji, Kazuha Toyama. Ryou asked her out, for all I heard, and it seemed like Heiji didn't like that!"

"Isn't Ryou Fujiwara this hot new guy who's moved here not long ago?" the other answered, seeming slightly impressed. "Wow, she really goes through this school's most popular guys, doesn't she?"

"But doesn't that seem dreamy?" her friend chuckled. "Having the two most handsome guys of this school fight over you? What would I give to be her!"

"You know, I would already be satisfied with Heiji!" the other giggled, and through my stunned state of mind, my eyes narrowed slightly at the two.

"Well, good luck, seems like he's free again!" the other one laughed.

I turned my attention away from them, my insides boiling in anger. No need to hear more of this nonesense. There were more important things to discuss.

"Heiji did that to you?" I demanded, seeing Ryou gulp at the tone of my voice.

"Yes" he admitted with a sigh. "I thought you'd freak out about it, that's why I didn't want to tell you…"

"_Freaking out_ is too weak a word" I groaned, my eyes scanning the corridor. "Oh, just wait till I find this low life of a-"

But I cut off my own sentence when I saw Heiji enter the corridor. The girls I had overheard talking earlier giggled at the sight of him, but I was in no mood to laugh at all. Rather to kill.

Heiji spotted me across the corridor, but looked away instantly, aiming for his locker. But I wouldn't let him get away like this.

"If you excuse me for a moment" I murmured to Ryou. "I've got a bone to pick."

"Kazuha, don't" Ryou sighed. "You're just making it worse!"

But I ignored his advise, already on my way over to Heiji in fast steps. I couldn't remember when I had last been this seriously angry with someone. I mean, sure, I was angry with Heiji in daily doses, but this time, he really overdid it.

There I had finally found someone who actually cared for me, and Heiji did his best to destroy it, of course. I could have ripped him into pieces.

"Have you gone insane?" I called as soon as I had reached Heiji. He still had his back on me, but I could tell that he froze. "How dare you punch Ryou? I mean, seriously, what's going on in your head!"

Heiji continued to put his books back into his locker slowly before turning around to me. I could see immediately that he looked super tired, like he hadn't slept all night. His usually stunning green eyes seemed blood struck and red, and there were dark rings under them.

"Mind your own business" Heiji returned in a quiet voice that was missing any force that I usually knew from him.

A little part of me flinched just at the sight of him. He looked terrible.

But the other part of me was still angry enough to return the punch he had given Ryou to him, and this angry part of me overruled any worry I could have felt for my former best friend.

"It IS my business if you're punching the guy I am dating!" I said loudly, stepping into his way as he was about to walk past me. "Do you have fun in destroying everything that's important to me?"

"Not the whole world revolves around you, Kazuha!" Heiji answered in an almost violent manner, as if my words had hit a weak point inside of him. I took slight satsifaction in that.

"Just admit it, you can't stand that I chose _him_ over _you_!" I told him, deliberately chosing words that would hurt. "This is like a game to you, and you just can't stand that you lost! But it's no game, Heiji, it's my life, damnit!"

"Sure, this is all it is about" Heiji chuckled without any humor. "My pride. Who do you think I am?"

"I've known you all my life, Heiji, I _know_ who you are!" I reminded him.

"Well, apparently, you don't!" he answered harshly before finally passing me, letting me stand there alone.

I turned around, watching him furiously as he passed a corner, but refrained from calling after him. I almost jumped in shock as I suddenly noticed Ryou right next to me. I had almost forgotten about him for a moment.

"I told you it was no use" he sighed. "You should just leave him be."

"Someone needed to put him into his place!" I argued. "He can't just walk around punching people! Who does he think he is?"

"He is a guy" Ryou shrugged, smiling down at me slightly. "And I stole his girl. How was he supposed to react?"

"Not like this!" I called, pointing at his bruised face.

"You know as well as I do that Hattori is no violent guy" he said patiently. "I provoked him a little, to be sincere. And he's very impulsive, so I kinda had it coming. Just forget about it, okay? It won't happen again."

"You don't need to defend him" I murmured.

"I'm not defending him, exactly" Ryou frowned. "I'm just… trying to get your mind off him. I told you I would make you forget him, and at this rate, all we'll be talking about is him."

I blushed in embarrassment, knowing that he was right.

"Sorry" I whispered.

"Don't worry about it" he smiled at me. "But we should really hurry to get to class now, we're running late."

"Yeah" I nodded, following Ryou quietly.

Ryou was right. I had sworn to exclude Heiji from my life, but he was still present in everything that happened. I needed to change this. There was no place for him in my mind anymore.

I needed to throw him out of my head. And my heart.

A.N.: Soooooooo... thoughts? :-P Do you think Kazuha was being unfair? Even though I probably sound like a broken record, I really love to hear your comments, so please keep on reviewing, it keeps me smiling throughout my busy days :-)


	7. Chapter 7

A.N.: Hey, everyone! Hope you all had a great weekend - mine was so busy it didn't even deserve the name "weekend" :-P  
Anyways, before we start with the new chapter, I wanted to clarify some things that have been mentioned in your reviews.  
A) A lot of you have been asking for Ran and Shinichi scenes. Like I said, they are about to come - you just need to have some patience. I put Kazuha and Heiji as leading characters for a reason - they are the main couple of this story, and the whole story line came to roll with them. Shinichi and Ran will appear when the time comes, and the whole scenery will move to Tokyo. But until then, you need to have some patience - you don't want any boring scenes just so I can include Conan and Ran, right? :-P There's nothing happening in Tokyo right now, all the action is going on in Osaka ^^  
B) This whole story is under the category "romance" for a reason. I never claimed to be an action or crime author, and I never will. Yes, there are gonna be parts about the organization, but those are minimal and to be plain, only put in for the sake of my story line. The main plot of this story revolves around the characters, their emotions and their relationships. Plainly a romance fanfiction ;) So if your expecting huge complicated cases or fights with the organization, I will probably have to disappoint you.  
I hope I could satisfyingly answer all of your questions with that :-) Keep the reviews coming, I love reading them! Now, onto the next chapter, and onto Heiji's and Kazuha's inner conflicts ;)

Chapter 7

_15:21 p.m., Tuesday, July 23__rd__ ,Ōsaka, Kaihou high school_

_Kazuha's POV_

Excluding Heiji from my mind was not an easy thing to do, though, considering that the whole school was talking about him and me. No matter where I went that day, all I heard were murmurs and pieces of conversations about Heiji and Ryou's fight yesterday during their Kendo training, about how I dumped Heiji to go out with Ryou, and about how Heiji was not taking my rejection very well, acoording to them.

"He's kept to himself ever since that Toyama girl broke up with him" I had heard one girl say during lunch break. "I mean, usually, he's surrounded by people, but now, he snaps at everyone who's coming close to him, totally isolating himself. He seems really crushed."

"Really, I always wondered what he saw in Toyama" her friend had shaken her head. "It's not like she's particularly pretty or something, but still, the guys seem to go crazy for her. First Heiji, now Ryou… But breaking Heiji's heart, I mean, who does she think she is?"

It went like this all throughout our school day. Everyone seemed to agree on the fact that I was the bad girl in the whole story, and Heiji the poor victim. It freaked me out. If only they knew. They should try to be friends with him if they think it's such an awesome thing!

All those years of unreturned love, fighting, being stood up regularly because of some stupid case… It wasn't that funny.

Okay, maybe not everything had been bad. After all, there had been reasons why I had fallen in love with him in the first place. But I just couldn't take his attitude anymore.

No matter how badly he took the whole thing, and no matter how desperately my bad conscience tried to creep up inside of me, I pushed it into the back of my mind firmly.

I was in the right. No matter if the whole school seemed to think otherwise.

But there was no time to think about Heiji now, I reminded myself as I walked out of the school building with Ryou. I was going to have a date now, and I was going to enjoy it. Heiji or no Heiji.

"Wow, it's raining really hard!" Ryou noted, tearing me from my thoughts. I looked out of the window, seeing that he was right – the whole sky was dark with blackish clouds, making it seem much later than it really was, and huge rain drops fell from the sky, immediately soaking everything they touched.

"Good that I thought of bringing an umbrella" I smiled at him, holding it up in the air demonstratively.

"True, I'm lucky to have you. I forgot mine" he chuckled.

I smiled, looking out of the window again. Heiji also always forgot his umbrella at home. Sometimes, I wondered if he wasn't even bothering bringing one because he knew I never forgot about it. He was just too lazy a person.

One glance outside prove me right again – I spotted Heiji leaving the school grounds, already dripping, his dark hair clinging to his face and neck. I gulped down the urge to run after him and share my umbrella with him.

Heiji was not my responsibility anymore.

_Heiji's POV_

I didn't even notice the rain drops as they hit me, or the wind that blew by, making it seem colder than it was. It was only secondary in my perception. My mind was elsewhere, occupied with things that seemed much more real than the stormy weather.

Everything seemed wrong since Kazuha had isolated herself from me. It was like she had taken a part of me with her. If anyone had told me I would feel like this… I wouldn't have believed them.

But it was there, creeping through me constantly, shaking me more than the physical coldness I felt – the emptiness.

I still couldn't understand Kazuha. She had always been a mistery to me – it was everything she did, her way of thinking, her behaviour, her words – I couldn't make sense out of her. It was like I thought one thing, and she thought exactly the opposite, and I just couldn't catch up with it.

And it was still like that. I didn't get what I had done for her to hate me like this. I didn't understand why she suddenly dated Fujiwara, when they had never been particularly close before…

And above all, I didn't get why it felt like it was tearing me apart. Or maybe, I knew. I probably had known all along, I just… didn't want to see it.

Soon, I had reached my house, but I didn't stop walking to go inside. It was like my legs were moving without me telling them to, but I didn't feel the need to stop them, either.

I knew where I was headed, though I never made the conscious decision to go there. It was like I had no choice at all. It had already been decided, long ago. Probably in my childhood.

The walk to Kazuha's house wasn't long. She didn't life far away from me – when we had been kids, I'd walked over to her house daily. After the death of her mother, though, she had mostly come over to my house, and this had become some kind of routine, so I hadn't been there in a while.

When I arrived, no one was there. I rang the doorbell several times, but there was no reaction. It was obvious that Kazuha hadn't returned yet, too – there were no muddy foot prints leading to the door, and there were no lights in the house. Kazuha would have turned them on the minute she got home. She still felt uneasy during thunderstorms, and wouldn't wander around in a dark house.

I sighed, leaning against the door. She was probably out with Fujiwara. The thought made everything inside of me clench.

Something flashed across the sky, and I heard loud thunder growl. It tore me from my thoughts for a moment, but not for long.

I don't know how long I sat on the steps in front of Kazuha's house – time didn't seem to pass anyways. She didn't return, and I couldn't help but imagine what she was doing. How she was smiling at Fujiwara. How he was touching her, maybe holding her hand (I couldn't bring myself to assume even worse)…

The wind was growing stronger, chilling me completely. I was freezing by now, but I still was unwilling to leave. I didn't even know what I was going to tell Kazuha when she finally got home, but I just needed to talk to her. To see her.

But she didn't return, and it freaked me out.

At some point, my phone started to ring. I hurried to get it, the irrational hope of it being Kazuha flaring up inside of me. But of course, it wasn't her. It was my Mum. Why would Kazuha want to call me, anyways?

"Yes?" I answered her call, disappointed.

"Heiji, where are you?" My mother demanded, her voice seeming worried. "School's been over for hours!"

"I know, I'm… out" I answered weakly.

"At this storm? You're gonna catch death!"

"There's something I need to do" I told her, suppressing a shudder as a gust of wind hit me.

"The hell you do!" she said firmly. "Heiji, there is a taifoon warning for tonight! I want you to head home immediately!"

"Give me another hour?" I pleaded.

"No! If you are not home in 10 minutes, I'll send your father to get you!" With that, she hung up. I sighed. She was always so resolute.

I looked around, hoping to find any glimpse of Kazuha returning, but nothing. Unwillingly, I stood up, taking slow steps away from the house. Before I turned around the corner, though, I stopped, looking around once more.

Nothing.

With a sigh, I turned around, returning home.

_Kazuha's POV_

_19:49 p.m., Tuesday, Ōsaka, Toyama mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

"Thanks for bringing me home, Ryou" I smiled as I walked towards the front door with him. "The movie was awesome."

"I'm glad you liked it" he smiled.

I smiled back, looking for my keys in my pockets as something caught my attention – footprints in front of our door. Was my Dad already home? Everything seemed dark inside.

I shrugged the thought off again.

"Anyways, I'll see you tomorrow" I smiled at Ryou.

"Okay. Goodnight, Kazuha" he nodded. There was a weird moment of silence between us, and I noticed that this was probably the moment of a first kiss after a date. It made me feel uncomfortable. I hastily drew out my keys, turning away from him.

"Yeah. Goodnight." I returned uneasily before opening the door. With a last smile towards Ryou, I disappeared inside.

A thunder rolled outside. Was there a taifoon coming?

I quickly turned on the lights in the corridor. I hated thunderstorms.

A.N.: Thoughts? Please review and tell me ;) Love you all!


	8. Chapter 8

A.N.: Hey everyone! :-) So, here I am again. Before we move onto the next chapter, I just wanted to remind you that english is not my mother tongue. Some of you have been complaining about spelling mistakes of mine, and I'm sorry about that, but it might happen. I don't have a beta reader, and I tend to overlook some things. Hope you can be nice about that ;)

Chapter 8

_7:30 a.m., Wednesday, July 24th, Ōsaka, Hattori Mansion_

_Heiji's POV_

As my alarm blew off, I felt like I had slept about 5 minutes, or maybe less. It had been the second night that I hadn't slept properly. I felt like every bone in my body hurt, and my head was throbbing with a heavy headache.

Even though my state called for me to stay in bed, I got up. I needed to get to school, because I needed to talk to Kazuha. Everything else was secondary.

I felt in some kind of trance as I got ready. My mind didn't even seem to register what I did – as if I had been put on auto pilot, and my body was just doing what it was used to do every morning.

When I got downstairs, my mother looked at me as if she was seeing a ghost.

"Heiji, what are you doing down here so early?" she asked incredulous, checking the clock. Usually, you need about half an hour longer to get ready…"

"I've got things to do in school" I murmured as I got into my shoes.

"And what about breakfast? You gotta eat something!" Mum scolded me.

„I'm not hungry" I shrugged. It was true, I even felt a little sick. Besides, I needed to make sure that I didn't miss Kazuha. I couldn't let her ignore me again. I would go crazy if I let this go on another single day.

"Are you alright, Heiji?" My Mum asked quietly, observing my face with worry. "You seem… in a frenzy…"

"I'm fine" I answered, rolling my eyes. "I just need to get going, okay? Bye!"

With that, I grabbed my school back and took off. „Heiji!" my Mum called after me, but I was already gone.

_8:23 a.m., Wednesday, July 24th, Ōsaka, Kaihou High School_

_Kazuha's POV_

When I got to school, Ryou was waiting for me at the entrance of the building. I smiled at his sight. I wasn't used to so much kindness – Heiji would never have gone out of his way to wait for me, or if he had to, he only did so grudgingly.

I scolded myself inwardly for comparing Ryou to Heiji. It seemed like I always did that. It was madness. I needed to stop thinking about him. If not for my sake, than for Ryou's – it was not fair of me to think of Heiji all the time while I was with him.

But just as I had made this decision, I entered the school building, and found Heiji waiting for me at my locker.

Hey, god. I know, I haven't talked to you in a while and everything, but could you please explain to me why you hate me so much? Really, what have I done? Can't you just, you know, keep Heiji out of my sight for only a little while? Why don't you let someone drop dead so he's occupied? That's what you did all the time when I _wanted_ to be with him, and now that I don't, you'll let him off that easily?

Thanks. Thanks a lot.

I groaned inwardly as I walked past Heiji to open my locker. Ryou kept a distance from us, waiting for me at the end of the corridor. Sometimes, I wondered how a guy could be as tactful as him. Heiji would have snapped at him to get out of his sight, if the roles had been reversed.

Only that I kind of wished Ryou had sent Heiji away, so that I wouldn't need to do it. I was really in no mood to talk to him.

"Kazuha" Heiji said quietly, trying to catch my attention. I pointedly ignored him, throwing my books into the locker and taking out the ones I needed. "Kazuha, I need to talk to you."

"We don't have anything to talk about" I answered coldly, inwardly scolding myself for even returning anything. I should have just kept ignoring him. "Everything's been already said."

"_You_ said everything" Heiji pointed out. "But you never gave me a chance to-"

"You've had enough time, for god's sake. We've been friends for our whole life, you could have talked there!"

"Don't be that stubborn" Heiji sighed, leaning against the lockers next to mine.

"Oh, and that from _you_! Now that's rich" I snapped, banging the locker shut and turning to leave, but he had already grabbed my arm, holding me back. A rush of electricity ran through me as he touched me, and I scolded myself inwardly for it.

"Please, Kazuha" he murmured, his voice more intense than I ever heard it. I hesitated only for a moment, though, tearing my arm away from him.

"Leave me alone!" I glared at him before taking off to join Ryou on our way to our classroom. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Heiji leaning his head against the lockers behind him, looking slightly lost.

"What did he want?" Ryou asked as I reached him, observing my face.

"To talk, but I told him to leave me alone" I answered shortly, dropping the subject.

I could still feel the warmth where Heiji had touched me. Had I just imagined it, or had his skin been unnaturally warm?

_10:52 a.m.,Wednesday , July 24th, Ōsaka, gym of the Kaihou High School_

_Heiji's POV_

I barely remembered how I made it through the classes after I had talked to Kazuha – or better, not talked to her. Everything was a blurr. I couldn't even think straight, I couldn't concentrate on anything…

It felt like my body had given in to the confusion in my head – I felt weak, and light headed. I just wanted this day to be over, and everything to fade. I didn't want to think anymore. I just wanted a break.

But of course, because life was cruel, I got no break. You don't get to crawl into a dark corner and wait till everything is over. That was not how things worked.

Lucky as I was, we had gym class today, and above all, this was the day where we should be given marks for our 100-meter sprints. Not that this was usually something I would be bothered about – gym class was actually one of my favorites, and I was always one of the best in the ranks. Only that today, I felt like some yakuza had put my feet into a barrel of concrete, and now I had to walk around with a ton of weight where my shoes should have been.

"Fujiwara, Ikezawa and Hattori!" The teacher called, and I groaned inwardly as I stepped forward for my turn. I looked towards the end of the track to see Kazuha standing there with a stop watch in her hand. The girl were supposed to be taking turns in stopping the time of the boys, and she was probably taking Fujiwara's. The thought made me feel even more sick than I already was.

"Ready?" The teacher called, and I forced myself to take position. "Set… Go!"

Everything seemed to circle around me as I tried to make my legs move. It was like in a bad dream in which you were trying to run from something, but it felt like your legs didn't move.

I finished last, but I hadn't expected anything else. And really, I didn't care much, as I still felt like the whole world was spinning around me. I felt like I was going to throw up.

"Heiji, what's wrong?" one of my class mates called, probably the girl who had taken my time, but I didn't recognize any faces in that moment. "Usually, you are way better! Are you alright?"

I couldn't answer. I leaned against a wall, searching for something to steady myself with, something that wasn't spinning.

Then, everything went black.

_Kazuha's POV_

"Well done, Ryou" I smiled at him as he was drinking some water. "You are top of class!"

He smiled back at me, but before he could answer, a girl behind me screamed.

"Heiji? Can you hear me? HELP!"

Wihout thinking, I spun around. It wasn't a conscious decision – rather pure intuition. But what I saw made my blood freeze in my veins.

Heiji was lying on the floor, his eyes closed, his cheeks flushed. He was not moving.

Everything around me disappeared. Ryou was gone from my mind, as much as the rest of the class, including the teachers. Nothing mattered – the only thing I felt was an intense fear. A fear for Heiji, burried deep inside of me.

Before I knew it, I had crossed the distance to him, kneeling down beside his unmoving body. The girl that had allerted me to his state with her screaming was shaking him, as if trying to wake him up, but I shoved her away rashly.

"Heiji?" I whispered, lying my hand on his cheek tenderly. "Can you hear me?"

His skin was burning up with heat, and his breathing was uneven. He didn't react to neither my touch nor my words.

"What happened?" A teacher asked as he reached us, kneeling down next to me.

"He's got a fever" I told him, unconsciously stroking over Heiji's cheek, moving it to feel his forehead to. "We gotta bring him to the medical room."

"Of course" the teacher nodded, calling his collegue towards us. I was barely aware of him, or of the murmurs of the class around us.

My eyes were focused on Heiji's flushed face, unable to move my gaze away, as much as I wasn't able to redraw my hand from his face.

A.N.: Duduuuuum. Anyone expected this? ;) If so, let me know. Please, give me some reviews, I'm right now feeling about as good as Heiji (sickness-wise) and have been in bed for 3 days, so I'm in terrible need for some nice words ;) Love you!


	9. Chapter 9

A.N.: Hey there, everyone! So, onto the next chapter, starting where we left of... with an unconscious Heiji ;)

Chapter 9

_11:04 a.m.,Wednesday , July 24th, Ōsaka, medical room of the Kaihou High School_

_Kazuha's POV_

I didn't realize what was happening until I had already followed Heiji and our teachers into the medical room. In my scared trance I hadn't wanted to leave Heiji's side, and the teachers hadn't objected – after all, Heiji and I had been inseparable until not long ago, and I doubted they were aware of their pupil's gossip topics.

It was when the teachers asked me to stay with Heiji while they contacted his parents, though, that I understood what I had done.

I had promised myself to forget about Heiji. And yet, here I was, throwing all my resolutions out of the window the minute something was wrong with him.

I let myself fall into a chair beside the bed Heiji was lying in as the teachers left the medical room, leaving me alone with my unconscious childhood friend. I scolded myself inwardly. That was typically me. What was Ryou supposed to think after a stunt like this?

I looked up at Heiji, studying his face. I wondered why I hadn't seen at first sight that he was not feeling well – his dark skin was unnaturally flushed, and he looked weak. In a flash, I remembered the heat of his skin as he had tried to hold me back earlier. I should have noticed. I knew him so well, after all. But I probably hadn't bothered to look close enough.

Not that it was my responsibility, really, I reminded myself hastily. That ahou was 18 years old, he should be able to watch out for himself! If he had not felt well, why had he come to school at all?

I looked up at him, gulping down the worry that was threatening to overtake my thoughts again.

He looked so vulnerable. I remembered when we were 5 years old, and he had caught the flu. He had been over at my house that day, and in a pretty bad state, which had worsened noticable over the day. Everyone had seen that he had been ill, but he had still been unwilling to go home. My mother had put her foot down in the end and we'd droven him home.

He had fallen asleep next to me on the back seat, and been in bed for a whole week afterwards.

"You never change, do you?" I whispered, reaching out to whipe the hair from his face. It was sticking to his sweaty skin. "You are stubborn and reckless and you never think. I really hate that about you" I murmured.

Suddenly, the door jumped open, making me draw my hand back hastily. I fought the feeling of being caught at doing something dirty as I recognized Ryou standing in the door, looking from me to Heiji, an unhappy look on his face.

"How is he?" he asked hesitantly, but it seemed like he had just thrown in that question for politeness, holding back what he really wanted to say.

"He has a fever" I shrugged. "I guess it's nothing grave."

He nodded, falling silent again.

"Have the teachers called the class off?" I asked, raising myself from the chair.

"Yes" he nodded.

"Well, then let's get changed and go into an early lunch break" I murmured, crossing the room without a second look towards Heiji. I felt like my façade would break if I observed his sleeping face once more.

"Kazuha" Ryou spoke up, catching my gaze. "About earlier, when Hattori broke down…"

"Don't think anything of it" I said quickly, shaking my head. "It was just… intuition. Old habits die hard."

"Are you sure?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at me as if doubting my statement. "You should have seen yourself, Kazuha. One couldn't even talk to you, all you could see was Hattori!"

"I've spend half of my life watching out for him" I said uneasily. "He has a way to get himself into trouble, and all those years of playing big sister… they rubbed off."

"That's it?" he prodded, and it was clear in his voice that he didn't believe me. "Kazuha, I never asked you to give Hattori up. I'd never do that. You don't have to act like you don't care for him anymore. You can't just kill your feelings off like that, it won't work, and I would understand if you still-"

"Stop it!" I interrupted him, my voice firm. "You are wrong!" I said clearly as I looked into his eyes. "I don't love Heiji anymore. Too much has happened between us, and I am sick of him. I just fell back into bad habits earlier, that's all. I don't care about him anymore."

"As long as you are this mad and dismissive towards him, he still has a place in your heart" Ryou pointed out, making me gulp. "And it's only natural" he added. "You can't forget him in a day or two, you've known him for too long. I don't blame you for that. I just thought… If you realized you made a mistake when you pushed him away, tell me now. I won't hold you back."

I looked at him, inwardly admiring him for his calmness. Here he was, practically allowing me to go back to Heiji. It showed how much he cared for my feelings, and that he just wanted me to be happy, no matter if it was with or without him.

Heiji would have never acted this way. In his position, he would have not let me go. He would have probably yelled and claimed his right over me.

It only showed me once more that I had made the right choice.

"I didn't make a mistake" I told Ryou, trying to ensure him. "Don't worry about that, I know what I'm doing."

"Do you really?" he sighed, obviously still doubting it.

"Trust me" I ensured him. "Stop worrying."

He was silent for a moment, before giving in.

"Fine. Let's get changed and have lunch."

And that's what we did. I was glad when I finally made it out of the girl's dressing room. It was like every single girl was throwing me nasty looks, and I was pretty sure I heard some whispers like"First she breaks his heart, and then she is all over him again! Can't she stick to what she does?".

Ryou was waiting for me at the exit, still looking troubled. But he was still there, after all, and I was thankful for this. I really needed to work on forgetting Heiji completely. Ryou didn't deserve to be worrying so much. He had been so nice to me, and here I was, only causing him problems…

We walked out of the building in silence, heading towards the cafeteria. I desperately tried to think of something to say, but nothing would come into my mind.

Finally, my thoughts were interrupted by someone calling my name.

"Kazuha-Chan!"

I looked around in confusion until my eyes finally fell on the figure approaching me. My heart sank somewhere into the area of my stomach.

Heiji's mother, Shizuka-San.

"Kazuha, what happened?" Shizuka asked worriedly as she had finally reached me. "The teachers called me saying Heiji broke down in gym class!"

"Yeah" I said, feeling highly uncomfortable. "He has a fever, and is sleeping in the medical room at the moment."

"I knew something was wrong" she sighed, shaking her head. "He didn't look well when he left early this morning, and he didn't even eat. He was all in a hurry, saying he had something to do…" My mind flashed back to earlier, when Heiji had tried to talk to me. Had he left that early in the morning just to talk to me? "Well, that's what he gets from wandering around in the rain for hours…" Shizuka continued. "When he came back home last night, he was all soaked through, no wonder he caught a cold… Do you have any idea where he was? He just wouldn't talk to me, he's been acting so weird lately…"

I remembered the footprints at our doorsteps last night. I tried to push it into the back of my mind. It couldn't have been him… or could it?

"I don't know where he was" I finally said to Shizuka.

"So he wasn't with you?" she sighed, disappointed.

"No… we are not exactly talking at the moment" I added hesitantly.

Shizuka frowned in confusion.

"What do you mean by that?" she asked.

"Well… what I said. We are not talking." I shrugged, repeating myself.

"What has he done this time?" she asked suspiciously, her eyes narrowing. "Just wait till I talk to him…"

"It's nothing he did" I murmured. "It's just… the situation in general. I think we are both better off without this friendship…"

"I'll talk to him" he said firmly. "And whatever he did, I'll bring him to apologize, so don't worry."

"I don't want an apology" I clarified. "Things are clear between us, and he knows that as well as I do."

Shizuka frowned again, observing my face with slight worry. It made me feel uncomfortable.

"Anyways" I murmured awkwardly. "I gotta get to lunch. I'll see you some time around."

"Yes" Shizuka nodded absentmindedly. "I wouldn't want to delay you…"

I nodded, trying to smile politely before linking arms with Ryou, dragging him away from Shizuka, towards the cafeteria. I could tell Shizuka was looking after me, and it made me feel uneasy.

A.N.: So, Heiji's mother knows what's going on. You think she will interfere? Tell me your thoughts, really, I can't guess them ;) I'd love some feedback, so just click onto those words below and write a comment ;) Not that hard, really. :-P


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

_16:42 p.m.,Wednesday , July 24th, Ōsaka, Hattori Mansion_

_Heiji's POV _

The next thing I knew, I was lying in a bed. I felt cold, even though the covers were around me. A wet tissue was sticking to my forehead. Never a good sign.

I forced myself to open my eyes, being greeted by a terrible headache when the light hit my eyes. I blinked, trying to figure out where I was.

The last thing I remembered was the 100 metre sprint in gym class, and how I hadn't felt well… Now, I found myself in my room. The blinds were drawn back, shielding the room from the sunlight, but it still felt too bright to me.

I thought about turning around to lie on my side (my back hurt like hell… but on the other hand, what part of me didn't hurt?), but decided against it. I wasn't sure if I had the strength to move.

The door opened slowly, quietly, as if my visitor was keen on not waking me up. For a moment, I had the irrational hope that it was Kazuha.

But of course, it wasn't. What did Kazuha care how I was feeling? That time was over, she had made that clear in the last couple of days.

Instead, my Mum entered the room, looking at me worriedly.

"You are awake" she discovered, entering the room to sit down in a chair next to my bed. "I thought you'd never wake up. You've been passed out for hours." She paused, as if she was waiting for me to say something, but I didn't. "How are you feeling?" she continued.

"Have been better" I returned drily, flinching at the sound of my own voice. It seemed way too loud in my ears.

"You have a high fever" she told me. „Why didn't you stay home if you didn't feel well? Above all, why did you go to gym class?"

"I don't know" I murmured, closing my eyes. I really wasn't in the mood to talk. All I wanted to do was sleep.

"I met Kazuha when I got you from school" Mum said suddenly, making me open my eyes to look at her. At the sound of Kazuha's name, I felt more awake, somehow. "She told me you two weren't talking" she continued, observing my face with eagle eyes. "Care to tell me what happened?"

"Ask her" I answered, my tiredness returning. "I don't know myself."

"So you didn't ask her?" she prodded incredulous.

"Of course I did" I sighed, slightly annoyed. "But everything she tells me is to leave her alone because she's _sick of my behaviour_, whatever that means… I think she just wants me to stay away from her so she won't have any problems with her boyfriend." I spat the last word.

"Boyfriend?" Mum asked, raising her eyebrows in wonder. "You mean that guy she was with when I talked to her earlier? About your height, quite handsome-"

"Yes, yes, that's him" I interrupted her. „She's clinging to him, though I don't understand why. Arrogant git, if you ask me. Everyone's darling."

"Well, I guess you're supposed to hate him, considering that Kazuha tended to cling to _you_ until not long ago" Mum pointed out.

I blushed slightly. I didn't think it was possible to blush for a person with a fever, but obviously, it was.

"Heiji, you and Kazuha have been friends since forever" Mum sighed, catching my gaze. "Are you really just going to let this go?"

"What am I supposed to do?" I demanded. „Every time I try to talk to her, she yells at me to leave her alone. It's not like she gives me a chance, really. Besides, _he_ is always around. He probably watches out that I don't get close to her."

"He won't be tomorrow" Mum shrugged, and I frowned at her, but quickly relaxed my facial features again. Damn headache.

"What are you talking about?" I demanded.

„Kazuha and her father are coming over for dinner tomorrow" she answered casually. „Don't you remember? We actually wanted to meet up on Saturday, to celebrate the start of your summer vacations, but your Dad and Kazuha's father are going on some business trip this weekend, so we rescheduled. Fact is, Kazuha will be here for dinner tomorrow. You can talk to her and sort things out then."

"She won't be coming" I murmured. "She will do everything to get out of this so she won't need to see me."

"Don't underestimate her father" she smiled devilishly. "Do you really think he'll let her back out of it?"

_17:02 p.m.,Wednesday , July 24th, Ōsaka, Toyama Mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

"You ARE going, Kazuha!" Dad said firmly, glaring at me. "End of discussion!"

"Why do I need to go?" I demanded angrily. „You and Heiji's parents will have fun on your own, you don't need me!"

„Why are you trying so hard to avoid meeting up with Heiji-Kun?" Dad asked with a frown. "Did you two fight again?"

„It's none of your business!" I groaned. "Fact is, I don't want to see that ahou!"

"Well, it's not your decision to make!" he decided. "The Hattori's are our friends, so we are going. Make up with Heiji when we get there, I mean, it's not like it's the first time you two fought…"

"And that makes everything better, or what?" I snapped. "Heiji is allowed to act like a jerk because _it's always been that way_?"

"Kazuha" Dad sighed. "Gosh, you and Heiji-Kun have been friends for an eternity! Whatever he did, I'm sure he didn't mean it. He's a decent guy, you know that."

„You are supposed to stand on my side, seeing as you are _my _father!" I yelled.

"I would if you didn't act this childish" he returned drily. „And until you grow up, I actually feel better if Heiji-Kun is there to watch out for you!"

"ARGH!" I groaned, walking past him angrily to get to my room.

„You are going, Kazuha!" Dad called after me, but I ignored him.

Why did it seem like everyone hated me these days?

_20:31 p.m.,Wednesday , July 24th, Ōsaka, Hattori Mansion_

_Heiji's POV_

I groaned as my cell phone started to ring. Couldn't I even have some peace when I was ill?

I ditched my first hope of it being Kazuha quickly. She wouldn't call anyways, and if she did, it probably wouldn't mean anything good, either way.

I was right with my assumption, as it turned out – Kazuha wasn't trying to call me. Instead, it was Kudou.

A rush of bad conscience came over me as I took his call. I had totally forgotten about him and his plans for the last few days. My mind had been too occupied with Kazuha to even think about Kudou and his situation…

"Yes?" I asked hesitantly.

"Hey Hattori!" Kudou's (or should I say Conan's?) voice greeted me. At least I knew he was still in his younger form, meaning he hadn't tried anything reckless yet. I would have felt extremely bad if I had left him alone with all of this. "Sorry, I know I haven't called in a while… Things have been going on over here, you know, Ran has pulled a huge cleaning stunt in my parents' house, and yeah…"

"So I understand you haven't run into your own death yet?" I inquired.

"No, and I'm not planning to" he returned drily.

"Do you still want to break into the organizations head quarter?" I prodded.

"Yes" he answered.

"Then, you _are_ planning to run into your own death" I repeated myself with a sigh, leaning further back into my pillow.

"I don't have time for your pessimistic talk, you know" he groaned on the other end of the line. "I'm serious, Hattori, I need to get going, or I may miss my chance."

"Wait for a few more days" I advised.

"For how long am I supposed to wait?"

"Until Saturday!" I shrugged. "Saturday is my first day of vacation. I'll come over to Tokyo, and then we can go. It's a promise. Just don't try anything alone."

"I don't know, Hattori" he sighed. "It doesn't feel right to draw you into this… I mean, you just told me yourself how dangerous this whole thing is! I mean, what if anything happens to you?"

"What if anything happens to you?" I shot back. "Don't play all worried now when I'm just trying to help you at what you are risking anyways!"

"That's not the same" he returned. "I don't have a choice, I need to act! But this is my fight, not yours!"

"You are my friend, so it's my fight as well as yours" I returned firmly. "I'll come over Saturday morning, if you want to or not."

"You are too stubborn" he sighed in defeat.

"Good, then at least you know that you don't have any other choice" I returned in satisfaction. "I'll see you on Saturday."

"Sure. See you." He agreed before hanging up.

I lay the phone back onto my nightstand, my thoughts shortly traveling to Kazuha. But I quickly tried to push the thoughts away again.

I was not going to have a bad conscience now. Kazuha didn't care anyways if I got caught up into something dangerous. I was not going to hold back from helping Kudou for someone who probably didn't even care what happened to me anyways.

I lay my head back into the pillow, closing my eyes, trying to clear my head, which turned out to be difficult, but at some point, my tired body gave in and I drifted away.

A.N.: There, we have _some_ news from Shinichi, even if it's nothing big ;) Thoughts? Please review and tell me. Did you know reviews make the world go round? Because they do ;)


	11. Chapter 11

A.N.: Hey, everyone! First, I wanted to throw out a huge thank you to salimaran08 and Iyami for reviewing my story so loyally 3 Thanks to everyone else who found the time to write a few lines, too :-D I love you all!  
Now, onto the next chapter - a strategy dinner of our favorite parents ;)

Chapter 11

_18:01 p.m., Thursday, July 25th, Ōsaka, in front of the Hattori Mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

I still didn't quite understand how I happened to be here again.

I mean, seriously, there I went, cutting off all contact I had to Heiji, and then my Dad came and forced me to come here. Really, why had I even worked so hard to tear Heiji out of my life if my Dad thought he needed to take the role of our counselor and tried to mediate between us!

Really, I had been almost relieved when Heiji hadn't turned up in school today. Not that I wished him his illnenss, but I seriously needed a break from him. But no, my Dad didn't grant me that one day of peace. Nothing goes over family, right? (I hope you detected my sarcasm)

So, here I was, getting out of the car in front of Heiji's family house and following my Dad towards the front door.

I hated the awefully familiar feeling of taking the steps to the front porch. This house had always been like a second home to me, but now I wanted nothing more than to never have to enter it again. It reminded me too much of all the feelings that I wanted to forget.

My Dad rang the doorbell before turning around to me once more.

"Kazuha" he started. "I'm only gonna say that once – I expect you to be civil towards Heiji-Kun. Whatever that boy did, forgive him already. It can't have been that bad."

I was about to snap something nasty back at him, but I was interrupted by Shizuka-San opening the door.

"There you are!" she smiled at us warmly, stepping aside to let us enter the house. "You have a good timing, dinner's gonna be ready in about ten minutes!"

"Now that does sound good, I'm starving" Dad returned, and I saw Heizo-San walking into the corridor to greet us as well. I missed parts of their conversation as I took a look around, unconsciously watching out for any signs of Heiji, but he didn't seem to be around.

That was, until Shizuka-San decided to call for him.

"Heiji!" she called loudly, making sure her voice was to be heard upstairs in his room. "Get down here already!"

I groaned inwardly at the sound of his footsteps. I didn't want to be here. Actually, I wanted to be anywhere _but_ here in this very moment, and that included the antarctis with only an ice bear as my companion. At least, it wouldn't be getting on my nerves.

Heiji looked perceptively better than yesterday as he came down the stairs. His skin had its healthy color back and didn't seem as flushed as yesterday, and the dark rings under his eyes were gone as well.

"Heiji-Kun!" Dad spoke up, greeting Heiji especially warm, only to provoke me, as far as I assumed. "How are you feeling? Your old man told me you were ill for the past days…"

"I feel better now" Heiji returned in his usual talkative manner. "It was only a mere cold."

"I wouldn't call it a mere cold if you break down in school" Shizuka-San murmured, but Heiji only rolled his eyes at her.

"I'm gonna help set up the table" he declared at last, taking off towards the kitchen, not having set an eye on me since the moment he had climbed down the stairs.

"Kazuha, why don't you help him?" Dad asked quickly, turning to me with a demanding expression on his face. I glared at him, but before I could answer, Heiji was already saying: "No need to, I can manage that alone!" With that, he was gone. It was the first time in days that I felt a slight rush of gratitude towards him, but I quickly gulped it down.

Shizuka-San followed Heiji into the kitchen as Dad, Heizo-San and I took off towards the dining room. The two of them were quickly involved in some chatter about work and I stared off into space, trying to figure out why exactly it was that I was here once again. Heizo-San and Dad would be talking about work all the times anyways, and knowing Heiji, he would want to participate on this conversation. Usually, he would be jumping back and forth between me and them, but obviously, this wouldn't be the case tonight. Which meant my only conversation partner left was Shizuka-San. Don't understand me wrong, Shizuka-San had become something like a second Mum to me over the years, but I doubted that we had enough to talk about to fill a whole evening with it.

When Heiji came back into the room to set up the plates, my Dad turned his attention from Heizo-San and some case they were discussing to him. I sensed trouble, but I could hardly keep him from talking to Heiji.

My assumptions about Dad's intentions turned out to be right, of course.

"Say, Heiji-Kun" he said in a joking manner, making him look up at him. "What is it Kazuha and you fought about this time? I want to know what exactly made her struggle so much to come here today!"

I didn't know if I was imagining it or not, but the kitchen door seemed to suddenly have opened quietly, making Shizuka-San able to listen, and even Heizo-San seemed to be awefully interested. The pleasure of having gossiping parents, I tell you.

Heiji's calm façade didn't waver the slightest bit, and it somehow made me even more mad at him than I already was.

"You should ask your daughter" he answered, still unusually calm. "Because I don't know myself."

Both Heizo-San's and my Dad's eyes focused on me then, looking at me expectantly. I, on the other hand, turned to pointedly glare at Heiji, but he wasn't looking at me – he quickly put the last plate onto it's place and turned his back on me, taking off for the kitchen again.

"Well, Kazuha" Dad prodded. "Why don't you enlighten us with an explanation, then?"

"Because you are being way too nosy" I returned angrily. "It's really none of your business!"

"Of course it is our business, you are our children!" Dad argued. "If you two aren't talking, it influences all of us! Have you ever heard of harmonious relationships?"

"Just leave me alone already, will you?" I demanded, crossing my arms in a defensive manner.

Damn, what were they trying to do, force us to make up or what? Not with me, that much was for sure.

Heiji came back from the kitchen them, this time carrying glasses. Our fathers used this opportunity to attack him once more.

"Heiji, come on!" Heizo demanded. "Just be mature for once and apologize to her for whatever you have done! Make up already!"

"Kazuha is not interested in an apology" Heiji informed him, still so calm that I felt the need to punch him. "At least, that's what she told me when I tried."

"Kazuha!" Dad groaned incredulous, turning to me again. "Stop being so stubborn, will you?"

"Why me?" I demanded angrily. "Why am I being the bad guy here? There are always two involved in a fight, damnit!"

"Yes, maybe that's true, but still, you are the one here acting totally childish!" Dad snapped.

"Me?" I shrieked. "So you wanna say he is being mature? In which world are you living?"

Heiji only shook his head before disappearing into the kitchen again. That was the moment Shizuka decided to finally enter the room, acting a little too bright for the current situation.

"Dinner is ready!" she announced with a huge smile. "Let's tug in!"

Dad and I fell silent at her words, only glaring at each other once more before not exchanging a word for the rest of the dinner.

A.N.: I'll already say, this is just a preamble to what is going to happen in the second part of this little dinner. So, thoughts? Reviews would be awesome. You can't imagine how much an author loves to get feedback ;)


	12. Chapter 12

A.N.: Hey, everyone! So, someone complained in their last review about this little cliffhanger of mine in the last chapter, and I found that very sweet. ^^ You thought that was an evil cliffhanger? You haven't seen me in my top form yet, obviously ;) Cliff hangers are my speciality. Remember I warned you ;)

Chapter 12

_20:22 p.m., Thursday, July 25th, Ōsaka, Hattori Mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

All throughout dinner, the subject of our fight was not being mentioned again, and I was grateful for that. As predicted, Heizo-San and Dad let most of the conversation, and Heiji involved himself into it from time to time – other than that, he seemed unusually quiet. I couldn't say anything else about me, though – apart from the few times Shizuka-San asked me some questions about school or aikido, I stayed silent, not feeling the need to speak up. Which was probably very unusual for me, as I recalled Heiji saying once that I never shut up.

When everyone was done with dinner, Heiji stood up and volunteered to do the dishes. Needless to say, this was unusual for him, too. Not that he was generally thoughtless, but he wasn't that thoughtful, either. I wondered if he just wanted to get away from us (read _me_).

But of course, my Dad didn't skip a beat to offer my help.

"Don't worry about it, I can do it alone" Heiji declined quickly at first, but his protest was drowned by his mother's response.

"Don't be ridiculous, Heiji!" Shizuka-San said disapprovingly. "The whole kitchen is a chaos, and you just recovered from your illness!"

"True!" Dad nodded. "Kazuha, help him, or are you going to leave him alone with all of this?"

I glared at Dad. As if I had any choice, really. This was pure blackmailing. If I said no, I would be the egoistical girl who lets the poor sick boy do all the work by himself, and an inpolite guest too. I would never hear the end of it.

So I got up, grudgingly following Heiji into the kitchen, making sure to bang the door closed behind me to express my anger, and above all keeping them from eavesdropping.

Heiji was already standing at the sink, letting warm water run into it.

"I'll do the dishes" he informed me. "You can dry up."

I only nodded, grabbing a towel before crossing my arms and leaning against the counter, waiting. For a moment, only the sound of the water was being heard, before Heiji turned it off and started to clean the plates.

The silence between us seemed unnaturally loud, so loud that it almost hurt physically. A thousands thoughts were passing through my head, and I just wanted to scream out and shout them at him. This was probably what people called being in a _destructive mood_. Oh yes, I wanted to destroy something, if possible even Heiji.

Maybe it was because he had been so calm all day. Heiji was never that calm – he was impulsive, unreasonable, unsensible… I had expected him to be mad at me, not indifferent.

Though, of course, I had wished for him to leave me alone. And now, he did. But it still didn't feel right.

"Are you gonna help me now or not?" Heiji demanded after a while, and I realized he had already cleaned quite a few things, which were sitting next to the sink, waiting for me to be dried.

"Just shut up!" I hissed back, walking up to stand next to him and start with my work.

"Sorry" he murmured, his voice still too calm, only a thin trace of sarcasm lying underneath it. "I forgot I wasn't allowed to talk to you."

"Stop it!" I snapped, turning to look at him. "Stop being like this, it freaks me out!"

"Being like what?" he demanded, turning to me as well.

"All calm, acting up all mature in front of our parents, just so everyone thinks that you don't care!" I said loudly.

With some satisfaction, I saw Heiji's pokerface crumble at my words, and anger intruded his green eyes.

"What is it that you want from me?" he called. "First, you tell me to leave you alone! Now, when I finally do what you say, you yell at me too! What is it that you want, Kazuha? Decide!"

"I want you out of my life!" I clarified. "I don't want to see you, or talk to you. And I don't want you to act up in front of my Dad!"

"Well, maybe, while you're already demanding all those things, you can tell me in return what the heck I have done for you to hate me so much!" he shot back, angrily focusing his eyes on a plate he was currently cleaning.

"You don't know?" I laughed without humor. "Gosh, you are so ignorant, as always! You have never treated me right, Heiji!"

"You act as if I had mistreated you!" he started to defend himself, but I interrupted him.

"In a way, you did!" I claimed.

"Oh, of course" Heiji returned bitterly. "I forgot what kind of naughty boy I am. I don't give a damn about lucky charms. I don't like dogs. And I _mistreat_ my friends. We're lucky I'm still on the side of the police, or I'd probably already be raping and killing."

"Don't talk to me like that!" I yelled, accidentally gripping the knife I was drying too hard, and the blade cut into my flesh. "Ouch!" I said loudly, drawing my hand away, observing the painful wound. The cut on my palm didn't seem to deep, but it started bleeding rapidly.

Before I knew it, Heiji had already let whatever he had been cleaning fall into the sink and stepped closer to me.

"What are you doing, ahou?" he murmured, his voice more quiet now, as he reached out for my hand. "Show me that wound."

"No!" I snapped. "Leave me alone!"

"Don't be ridculous, Kazuha!" he shouted, looking at me with a look in his eyes that I had never seen him direct to me. There was blind rage, sure, but also something else, which I couldn't decipher, though it seemed to make me immobile.

He used my stunned state to take my injured hand into his, palm up, observing my wound. His touch was gentle, and it made me gulp.

Without a word, Heiji turned and took a tissue from the counter, carefully pressing it to my wound.

"Stay like this for a moment" he whispered before turning around, opening a cupboard and rummaging in it. He soon found what he was looking for, and turned to me again, a bandage in his hands.

He told me to stretch my hand out, and, still shocked by his caring attitude, I did what he said.

He took my hand back into his, his movements careful and slow as he started to wound the bandage around my hand. It reminded me of the one time he had found me in the spider webs during this case. I had been drowsy from the medication, sure, but I still remembered how gentle he had been as he had lifted me out of the webs, and how safe I had suddenly felt in his arms.

I tore my thoughts back into reality as Heiji finished with his mistrations, fixing my bandage. Those times were over, I reminded myself. I was not going to think about it anymore.

As soon as he was done, I drew my hand away from him violently, returning to the dishes. Heiji stood there for a moment, looking at me in confusion.

"I'm not gonna bite, you know" he said in a low voice. I didn't answer, just concentrating on the plate I was drying. "I thought that after all those years" he murmured, his voice having an edge to it that I couldn't identify, but it seems like I knife right through my insides. "You'd at least know that you can trust me, but apparently, you've even forgotten about that!"

"Me, trusting you?" I demanded hotly. "You've brought me into nothing but trouble over the years! Remember all the times I got almost killed because of your stupid detective plays?"

"You act as if I ever endangered you on purpose!" he said incredulous. "As if I had ever let anyone hurt you! I would have rather died than-"

"STOP IT!" I yelled, dropping the plate I was drying. It made a loud noise as it collided with the surface of the counter, but I didn't care. "Just stop it, will you? You've always been egoistcal, Heiji, like the whole world revolves around you, and I've never been important! NEVER! Don't act like it's different now!"

Heiji just stood there, staring at me. I couldn't bring myself to look up at him.

"So, that's what you think of me?" he said, his quiet voice much more intense than if he had screamed.

"Yes, it is!" I snapped.

"Fine" he nodded emotionlessly, just walking past me, leaving through the door leading to the corridor, away from our parents and me. I heard his footsteps as he climbed up the stairs.

I breathed in deeply, trying to blink back the tears that I felt coming. I didn't know why I was shaking, or why I felt like closing myself away somewhere and crying.

The door that connected the dining room and the kitchen burst open, revealing my Dad and both Heiji's parents. So, they had been listening, after all. I should have known.

"Kazuha!" Dad called, crossing the distance towards me, his expression authoritarian. "You're going right after him and apologize! Take back what you just said, or I'll-"

"The hell I will!" I called angrily, throwing the towel I was holding down as well, turning to them. "Stay out of my business!" With that, I left through the same door Heiji had left through, but instead of following him upstairs, I turned for the door.

"Kazuha!" Dad called after me. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm waiting by the car!" I called back, banging the door shut behind me.

The cold air felt good on my heated skin, but it didn't keep my hands from shaking.

_Shizuka's POV_

"Calm down" I said to Kazuha's father, who was about to shout after his daughter once more. "You'd better leave her alone. We can't force them to do anything, and by trying, we're just making it worse."

"I can't just allow her to behave like that!" he protested.

"None of them will calm down if we don't stay out of this" Heizo backed me up.

"Exactly, and I'm gonna go look after Heiji now!" I informed them, heading for the stairs.

"Tell him Kazuha didn't mean it like that!" Toyama shouted after me. I only grimaced as I walked up the stairs. I guessed that wasn't something very convincing to say.

The door to Heiji's room stood half open, and inside was movement to be heard. I peaked in carefully, wanting to make sure to not enrage him even more. I knew how my son could get.

I frowned at the image in front of me, though. Heiji was walking back and forth between the cupboard and his bed, on which stood a traveling bag, which was already half full of clothes.

"Heiji?" I asked in confusion. "What are you doing?"

"Packing" he answered shortly, folding one of his t-shirts.

"I can see that" I returned. "But for what?"

"I'm leaving for Tokyo tomorrow" Heiji shrugged. "Gonna visit Kudou."

"Heiji" I sighed. "Running away is not the right way."

"I'm not _running away_" he said. "I wanted to go anyways. It's vacations from tomorrow on, after all. And one day sooner or later, what does it matter?"

"Heiji, if you go now, it won't bring Kazuha back either!" I tried to reason with him.

My words seemed to be his undoing. Enraged, he threw his socks into his bag, looking up at me.

"You know what? She won't come back if I stay either!" he said loudly. "No matter if I apologize, or leave her alone, or _whatever I do_, she doesn't want me around _at all_! And if that's what she wants, fine! I'm not gonna force myself onto her!"

"Heiji, I… I'm sure she didn't mean it that way…" I murmured, searching for words.

"Oh, but she did!" he said firmly. "You heard what she said, don't pretend you weren't eavesdropping all the time! She hates me, and she wants me out of her sight! Why should I be running after her to make her grow up?"

"Because you care about her" I said softly. "And don't pretend it's not true."

He looked down, his eyes focusing on his bag. After a moment of hesitation, he zipped it up, looking back up at me.

"I'm gonna fly right after school tomorrow" he informed me.

"This is a mistake, Heiji" I told him.

"You know what? I don't care" he shrugged, lifting the bag off of his bed and lying it on the floor.

A.N.: There, there. I call that a somersault of events ;) So, thoughts? Messages to the characters? I'll forward them gladly to them :-P Unless they are death threads, of course - we don't want our dear Conan to abandone the whole organization project because he finds out there are death threats against his friends :-P (No, I'm not drunk. Just a little silly, in the best way ;))


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

_08:41 a.m., Friday, July 26th, Ōsaka, Kaihou High School_

_Kazuha's POV_

I walked into the class room alone, sensing that this was not going to be my day.

First thing this morning, I was woken up by a short message from Ryou, telling me that he needed to walk his little sister to kindergarten because his Mum had an emergency call from work, and so he wouldn't be able to walk with me. Not that this was usually a big problem, but it didn't help to lift my mood, considering I had barely slept all night.

Well, that wasn't precisely true. Sure, I had laid awake until far after midnight, my mind not being able to rest. Unwanted images had formed in my head, and Heiji's words from last night had repeated themselves over and over, driving me insane. I had managed to drift away quite a few times, though. Only that those few hours of what could have been wonderfully relaxing sleep had been ruined by several nightmares keeping me always on the edge of wake. Not to mention that somehow, Heiji managed to sneak himself into every single one of those dreams. Not even in my sleep I was allowed to have some peace from him.

So, needless to say, I wasn't in the best mood when I sat down at my table. Thank god this was the last day before summer vacations – I really needed my rest from all this insanity going on in my life.

I inwardly groaned when I spotted Heiji entering the classroom. He caught my gaze from across the room, holding it for a short moment before walking to his table next to mine and sitting down. I pointedly looked out of the window, ignoring him. He did me the favor of not trying to talk to me.

My demonstrative focus on the clouds outside our school building was interrupted by a familiar voice calling my name a few minutes later.

"Kazuha!" Ryou called softly, a smile playing on his lips. "Are you day-dreaming?"

"Um, no" I chuckled, turning my head away from the window and returning his smile. "I was just lost in thoughts. Didn't sleep to well."

"You never seem to sleep well these days" he noted, frowning.

"Well, I guess I really need the vacations" I joked, and he shrugged, letting the subject drop.

"Anyways" he said. "How was that dinner with those friends of your Dad you were on yesterday? Was it as boring as you predicted?"

My stomached dropped several inches, and a bad conscience crawled through me at lying to Ryou. But I didn't think that bringing Heiji up was such a good idea. It would only worry him.

"Yup, pretty boring" I shrugged, not looking at him. "You know, all work-related chatter…"

"I see" he smiled, looking over his shoulder as the teacher strolled into the classroom. "I'd better get to my place. Talk to you later."

With another smile at me, he left for his table. I frowned to myself until I heard Heiji's voice from the table next to mine.

"Such a young relationship, and you're already lying to him" he said in a dry voice, not looking at me but focusing the blank blackboard. "I see, your love is blooming."

"Just shut up!" I hissed at him, furious. "This is none of your business!"

"Well, why didn't you tell him you were with my family last night?" he shrugged, his voice carrying a slight trace of smugness. "I thought you don't care about me anymore, so it shouldn't be such a big deal, should it?"

"Just because it isn't, I didn't mention it" I snapped. "You have a way of destroying everything, Heiji, and I won't risk you getting in between Ryou and me!"

"Oh, I forgot how bad I am, sorry" he murmured sarcastically, shaking his head. "That I destroy _everything_"

"Yes, you do" I snapped, but cut myself off when the teacher started talking. I shot one last look at Heiji across the table, meaning to glare at him, but he wasn't looking my way – he was looking down at his hands, looking almst… lifeless. Lifeless and sad. The image struck me right in my stomach, making me feel sick. Looking away quickly, I threw a look across the classroom, spotting Ryou – he actually _was_ looking my way, frowning slightly.

As our eyes met, I blushed, looking down at my table. I sincerely hoped he hadn't watched us and misinterpret my bickering with Heiji… and above all, I hoped he hadn't caught anything about me lying to him.

_16:34 p.m., Friday, July 26th, Ōsaka, Hattori Masion_

_Heiji's POV_

I climbed down the stairs, shouldering my traveling bag, ready to take off for the airport. I had been in an unreasonable hurry to leave Ōsaka almost since I woke up today, feeling the terrible need to get away. From everything.

I put the bag down and slipped into my shoes as my Mum walked into the corridor, leaning against the doorframe and watching me with weary eyes.

"So, you're really going? Just like that?" she prodded, sounding disappointed. I rolled my eyes, my back still turned to her so she couldn't see my expression.

"I have vacations, right? Vacations are usually the time to travel, as far as I remember!"

"Stop being such a smart ass to hide what you're really feeling. That's always been a bad habit of yours, Heiji!" Mum criticized. When I didn't answer, she continued lecturing me. "I really think you should talk to Kazuha once more. You're running away, and you know it."

"I'm not running away" I groaned. "Kazuha doesn't want to see me, talk to me, or even know of my existence anymore – you can't run away from something that's not even in your reach."

"Are you sure there is no way to make this right again?" she asked, her voice carrying a trace of longing. "I mean, no one can just decide to not care for someone from one day to another. You can't, and nor can Kazuha."

"Obviously, Kazuha can" I returned drily. "But really, I don't care anymore. She can run into her own unhappiness, for all I care. I'm not going to try to make her grow up any longer. I mean, I'm not her brother or anything! It's really not my responsibility!"

"True, it's not your responsibility" Mum agreed. "But what about your happiness, Heiji? Because we both know that you love her. Are you really just going to give her up like that?"

Her words hit me like a slap, and I was glad I had still turned my back to her and she couldn't see my face. I was about to return that I did _not_ love her, and that I didn't care in the slightest, and that I didn't need her, but it wouldn't come out. I had never been good at lying.

So I didn't answer, instead grabbing my back and shouldering it.

"The cab will be waiting already" I murmured. "I have to go, or I'll miss the plane, and I'm in no mood to wait for another two hours for the next one."

"Alright" Mum sighed, giving up. "Take care of yourself."

"I will" I nodded before, taking off for the door.

A.N.: So, Heiji's about to take off to Tokyo :-S Thoughts about that? I'm waiting for your comments! :-)


	14. Chapter 14

A.N.: Hey, everyone! Did you really think I would let Heiji fly off to Tokyo liek that? ;) No, no, I have other plans for him still... ;) I hope you enjoy them!

Chapter 14

_17:26 p.m., Friday, July 26th, Ōsaka, Ōsaka airport_

_Heiji's POV_

After that talk with my mother, my desperate need to leave the city had turned into an anxiousness to go through with it.

It was pathetic – I knew it was the right thing to do. I mean, Kudou needed me in Tokyo, and I knew that no matter if I stayed in Ōsaka or not, no matter if I tried talking to Kazuha once more or whatever I'd say, it wouldn't help anything. She had run herself too deep into the conviction that I was the source for all the trouble in her life (probably even all the trouble in the world) that needed to be eliminated.

So really, if you saw it rationally, there was no sense in me staying. Leaving the city was probably the best thing I could do for my own mental health.

But still, it felt wrong. Like the decision I made now was to decide my whole life. And it drove me insane.

The line to the ticket counter in which I was waiting got shorter and shorter, and the closer I got to buying my plane ticket, the louder the doubts inside my head seemed to become.

My Mum's words repeated themselves in my head. _"But what about your happiness, Heiji? Because we both know that you love her. Are you really just going to give her up like that?"_

"Sir?" the lady behind the counter asked politely as it was my turn, breaking me out of my revery. "What can I do for you?"

I only stared at her, unable to return anything. _Because we both know that you love her._

"Sir?" she repeated, looking at me with raised eyebrows.

_You love her._ I had never told her. I had always assumed that she knew, and that things would magically work themselves out when the time came… But things didn't work like that, did they? Sometimes, you needed to risk something. I had spent my whole life risking things, in my work as a detective… But when it came to my feelings, I had always stayed on the safe side.

And that was exactly why I had lost her.

"I need to tell her" I murmured, totally having forgotten where I was. The lady behind the counter looked at me helplessly, as if trying to decide if she should just have me removed by the security or not. "Sir? Are you alright?"

"Yes" I nodded, my voice clearer now. "I'm sorry."

With that, I turned around and left the airport again.

It didn't take me long to find a new cab to bring me to Kazuha's house. Still, the way there seemed to draw out way too long. It was not like time was pressuring me or anything, but still I felt like it was running out for me. Like an hour glass which was coming to it's end, and I still hadn't done what I needed to do.

I almost jumped out of the cab when we reached Kazuha's house. Throwing some bills towards the driver, not caring for change, I sprinted up the stairs towards the front door.

I rang the doorbell 2 times. Then another three times. No answer. All the blinds were drawn down, too. No one seemed to be here.

"No…" I groaned, leaning with my back against the locked door. This couldn't be happening. Why did such things always have to happen to me?

She was probably out with Ryou, celebrating the the beginning of vacations, the beginning of 2 Heiji-free months. The thought made me sick.

I slit down to the ground, hugging my knees close to my body. This situation seemed way too familiar – waiting here in front of Kazuha's house for her to come back from _him_. It left me anxious. Nothing good had come out of it last time, and I had a feeling that this time, it wouldn't be any different.

I didn't seem to be wrong. 30 minutes, 2 hours, 3 hours… And all with no sign of Kazuha. I would have even been glad to see her father, or even a neighbour, just to not make me feel like I was the only one on this whole freaking planet following an impossible mission. But of course, her father was on a business trip together with mine, and her neighbours didn't seem to turn up, either. Maybe they were on the way to the airport, taking off to some place for vacations. It was a sensible thing to do, really, but no, sensible didn't seem to work for me. Instead, I rather sat countless hours on the front porch of the house of a girl who probably won't even want to talk to me anyways.

Way to go, Heiji. But still, I didn't seem to be able to move myself from this exact porch. I was going to wait for Kazuha to return, no matter if I made a complete fool of myself or not. It couldn't get any worse than it was now anyways.

It turned out, I was wrong. It actually could get worse. Remember one thing – no matter how bad things are, it can _always _get worse.

It was exactly 21:13 p.m. as two dark figures turned around some corner to stroll over to the house. Though the sun was already going down and I couldn't really see anything, I recognized Kazuha instantly. I guess I would recognize her anywhere.

I jumped up, ready to run to her, but hesitated as I remembered Ryou's presence. Something held me back, and I decided to stay in the shadows until he was gone.

"Yeah, I know" Kazuha chuckled as they came nearer. "I mean, this guy just can't act, can he? And he doesn't even look good!"

"Hasn't he been voted Sexiest Man Alive or something?" Ryou asked, seeming amused.

"Really?" Kazuha asked incredulous. "Gosh, what kind of women live on this world?"

Ryou laughed as Kazuha started to rummage in her bag, searching for her keys. They fell silent for a moment, and it seemed like all I could hear was my heartbeat in my ears.

"Anyways, thanks for inviting me to the movie" Kazuha said cheerfully, looking up at him again. "It was really fun, and-"

Ryou moved so fast that I couldn't fully comprehend it at first – he grabbed Kazuha's shoulder, drew her close, and cut her off by bringing his lips to hers.

It seemed like in that moment, my whole world seemed to shatter. Something inside me broke apart, leaving nothing but some huge cliff in my heart, and immeasurable pain.

I tried to remind myself to breath, but air seemed to have run out on earth as I watched the two of them kiss.

A.N.: Duduuuum. Now I want your thoughts. Actually, I'm dying for them XD So review, review, review!  
Also, I posted the first part of a three shot today, called The Drunken Mind Speaks The Truth! I would be thrilled if you could check it out!  
Love you all!


	15. Chapter 15

A.N.: ... Not many words needed, are there? Starting where we left of, in Kazuha's POV.

Chapter 15

_21:11 p.m., Friday, July 26th, Ōsaka, Toyama mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

"Yeah, I know" I chuckled at Ryou's words, walking down the path towards the front door of our house. "I mean, this guy just can't act, can he? And he doesn't even look good!"

"Hasn't he been voted Sexiest Man Alive or something?" Ryou asked, seeming amused.

"Really?" I asked, shocked. "Gosh, what kind of women live on this world?"

Ryou laughed and I smiled slightly as I started to rummage in my bag, searching for my keys. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Ryou glancing towards our doorway in silence.

"Anyways, thanks for inviting me to the movie" I said cheerfully, eager to break our silence as I looked up at him again. "It was really fun, and-"

Ryou was grabbing my shoulders, too fast for me to even understand what he was doing, and before I knew it, his lips were on mine

It seemed surreal. His lips were hard, unmoving and had a rough texture. He really needed lip care.

I had always imagined my first kiss to be like something out of Hollywood – maybe in a beautiful lit garden, with me wearing a princess dress, and my foot flipping. But it weren't my surroundings that bothered me most about this whole situation.

It felt wrong. Weren't first kisses supposed to be exciting, romantic, breath-taking, yadda yadda? This wasn't anything close. I felt nothing, except a need to push him away.

I hadn't imagined my first kiss like this. I had always imagined it… with Heiji.

That thought felt like I knife right into my heart, filling me with unbearable pain, making it hard for me to breathe. An image of Heiji's face turned up in my mind, an easy smile on his face, his green eyes sparkling in amusement… The way I loved him. They way I fell for him.

I hadn't seen Heiji smile like that in ages.

As Ryou let go of me, I felt myself shaking. I didn't dare to look into his eyes. There was a short moment of silence, before Ryou gently kissed my forehead. I forced myself to not back away from him.

"Goodnight, Kazuha" he whispered.

Without waiting for my answer, he took off. I looked after him hesitantly, seeing him disappear behind a corner.

I felt like crumbling on the floor, and dying. What was it that I was doing here? There was this wonderful guy, who was absolutely great and kind and perfect, and I… I was lying to him. Lying to him, to me, and to Heiji. Above all to Heiji.

I balled my hand into a fist to keep it from shaking, noticing that the house key was still in my hand. I should get inside. It was getting cold.

I turned to the door, slowly, ready to climb up the few steps up the porch as I saw a dark figure standing in front of the door, motionless. I blinked, trying to focus my eyes on the face.

My heart, which had been pounding in soft pain until now, suddenly felt like it was breaking apart.

It was Heiji. He was standing only a few feet away from me, a traveling bag on the ground next to where he was standing, looking at me with a face I had never seen on him before.

Empty. Broken. _Hurt_.

I stood very still, just staring up at him. I knew immediately that he had seen the kiss between me and Ryou, and tried to fight the feeling that I had done something terrible. After all, it wasn't like I was cheating on Heiji, was it?

But it surely felt like it.

I cleared my throat to find my voice.

"Heiji" I said, my voice somehow husky. "What are you doing here?"

His jaw clenched, and he slowly bend down to pick up the bag to his feet.

"Nothing" he said in a low voice, which was guarded, but still seemed fragile to me. "Forget that I came here."

He started to walk down towards me, avoiding my gaze as he passed me. Like out of a reflex, I grabbed his arm to keep him from leaving.

He immediately tore his arm away from me violently, making me stumble in surprise.

"Don't _touch me!"_ Heiji hissed, and I looked up at him, catching his eyes – the green orbs I had always found both fascinating and reassuring at the same time had an unknown sharpness to them, and I tried to remind myself to breathe.

"Why are you here?" I asked, but my words seemed to come out as a gasp.

"Why do you care?" he shot back loudly.

"For heavens sake, Heiji!" I broke out desperately. "For once in your life, TELL me what you are thinking! I can't read your mind, damnit!"

He turned towards me, and it seemed like I had finally cracked the wall around him – his guard was down, and suddenly, he was shouting at me.

"You want the truth?" he yelled, and I could see the pain he was feeling written all over his face, could feel it gripping around my heart, sqeazing down like it was trying to smash it. "What does the truth even matter anymore? What good will it do if I tell you now that I love you, and that I fucking loved you all the fucking time, how does it matter? You've got Fujiwara," he almost whispered those last words, the volume of his voice rapidly falling, as if he had run out of energy. "And I got it, Kazuha, I finally got it. I'm gonna leave you alone. You won't be seeing me for the next two months, or with a little luck, never again, and that's a promise!"

I only stared at him in shock, not being able to return anything, trying hard to understand what he had just said.

Had he really said that he loved me? And what was this supposed to mean, _never again_?

Heiji turned around, taking fast steps away from me towards the street. I desperately tried to collect my strength to call after him.

"Why now?" I screamed, my voice unnaturally high. "Why are you telling me this _now_, why not sooner?"

Heiji stood, looking at me over his shoulder. The darkness was slowly swallowing him, and it became harder and harder for me to make out the expression on his face.

"You didn't want to hear it" he finally said, his voice thin, close to breaking. "Or you would have listened way sooner when I tried to talk to you!"

With that, he left, into the opposite direction Ryou had disappeared in only a few minutes ago.

A.N.: ... I'll let you do the comments :-P I am excited to be shouted at from you (because I know you're gonna be angry with me haha XD).  
Before I leave, I just wanted to add (in answer of a request) that of course, if anyone feels the need to draw anything out of my story, you are free to do so. I would just ask you to PLEASE put it online and send me the link, I'd be so excited to see it! :-D xox


	16. Chapter 16

A.N.: Hey, everyone! So, with this chapter, the imaginary first part of this story ends :-) There are two more to come, though, so don't worry :-)  
I just wanted to tell you that sadly, I won't be able to update more than once a week from nowon. I've been running out of chapters lately and Uni is going crazy, so I don't have much time to write. I hope you understand that.  
Now, onto the next chapter, starting where we left off in the last.

Chapter 16

_21:16 p.m., Friday, July 26th, Ōsaka, Toyama mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

When Heiji was gone, sobs were raking through my body mercilessly. Without my consent, the tears started running down my cheeks, blurring my vision. I gasped, trying to catch my breath, but my lungs seemed to hurt as they filled with air.

I didn't even realize I was not alone until I heard his voice.

"What are you doing?" Ryou asked, his voice tired and resigned. "Run after him, or he'll be gone."

I turned around, my eyes focusing on him. He was standing at the corner I had thought he had left behind earlier, leaning against the wall, looking at me. I tried to control my sobs, but I couldn't.

"I saw him standing there" Ryou sighed, biting his bottom lip as if in embarrassment. "Just as I heard you talk earlier today. About how you were at his house last night, and how you were lying to me. I just… I knew it all the time. I had a feeling that somehow, no matter what I was doing, I just couldn't make you forget him. You were only running away from your feelings, but deep inside, you still loved him all along. You never hated him. You could never bring yourself to." He made a short pause, but I couldn't find my voice to speak, so he continued. "And when I saw him standing there earlier, I just thought… I wanted to show him that he had lost you, and that you were mine. But you were never mine in the first place. You were always his, and we both know that."

"Ryou…" I whispered.

"I told you at some point that it doesn't suit you, letting him push you around. But you know what suits you even less?" he said softly, his firm gaze meeting mine. "Giving up."

I gulped, closing my eyes, trying to get a grip of myself. I wanted to tell him he was wrong, but couldn't bring myself to. I was tired of lying, of never letting myself feel what my whole heart _wanted_ me to feel.

"Now go" Ryou sighed, making me open my eyes again. "You can still catch him if you try. Put him out of his misery."

I took in a deep breath, before I approached him in a slow pace. When I stood right in front of him, I looked into his face, somehow hoping to see any way to get both him and me out of this mess unhurt, but I knew there was none. I had already gone way too far, triying to keep some lie alive, and now, it was dead. There was no turning back anymore. He had decided, and so had I.

"I'm sorry" I whispered, before crossing the distance between him and me to hug him. He was warm, compared to the cold night air around us. "And thank you."

With that, I let go of him, and took off running, into the direction Heiji had left in.

It didn't take me that long to get to the Hattori's house. Everything seemed unnaturally quiet, somehow wrong, considering the storm going on inside of me. I ran up to the front door, attacking the door bell in a frenzy, ringing it three times in a row. Then another two times.

It was Shizuka-San who opened the door, looking surprised to see me.

"Kazuha-Chan" she frowned. "What are you doing here?"

"I need to speak to Heiji!" I said quickly, and even I could tell how desperate my voice sounded. "Please!"

"Heiji is not here" Shizuka-San answered, taken aback. "He is in Tokyo."

"What?" I asked, stunned.

"He has taken off right after school" she answered, observing my face in confusion. "He wanted to spend a week or two with this Shinichi Kudou, he wasn't quite sure when he would be back… Did anything happen, Kazuha-Chan?"

"He… he is not in Tokyo!" I stuttered, bewildered. "He was at my house, only minutes ago, and we had a fight, and…" I remembered the bag in his hand, and his words. _You won't be seeing me for the next two months_.

Without another word, I turned on my heels, sprinting down the street, eager to get to the main street to be able to catch a cab or a bus or _anything_ that could bring me to the airport. Maybe it was not too late yet. I needed to find him, to make everything alright again.

"KAZUHA-CHAN!" Shizuka-San called after me, but I didn't pause.

Everything seemed to go wrong. It took me about ten minutes to find a cab, and when I had finally found one, the traffic was going crazy, making it almost impossible to get to the other end of the city without delay.

33 minutes of pure hell later, I was finally bursting through the entrance of the airport. I looked around anxiously, as if I expected to see Heiji walking past me, but of course, he didn't.

"Calm down, Kazuha" I murmured to myself, trying to think clearly.

Scanning the display channel, I soon found the next flight to Tokyo.

Which was taking off in _4 minutes_.

"Damn!" I cursed, starting to run. It didn't take me long to find the right gate, but in my hurry, it seemed like an eternity.

A line of waiting people stood in front of the counter, probably handing in their luggage for the next flight. I ignored the angry shouts of the other people as I sqeazed myself right to the front.

"I need to get on the plane to Tokyo!" I told the woman behind the counter, who looked at me like I was going insane. "Now!"

"I'm sorry, Miss" she said hesitantly. "But the boarding has already ended about 10 minutes ago, and-"

"You don't get it!" I interrupted her, the panic inside of me making the words flow out like a waterfall. "My best friend is sitting in this plane right now, and I need to get in there to tell him that Iove him, and if I don't, I might loose him forever!"

"Even so-" the woman began, but I cut her off again.

"When Rachel tried to chase after Ross in _Friends_, and she was too late, didn't we all cry with her because _she should have been able to tell him that he means everything to her?_ Please, don't let me go through the same misery as her! I need to get in there and tell Heiji that-"

"I'm very sorry, Miss!" the woman said loudly, and she really looked like she was indeed sorry. "But even if you tell me all of that…" she turned her head to look out of the huge glass front to the right of us. "Do you see that plane there?"

I looked to where she pointed. I did see it – a rather small airplane, probably only used for nation-wide flights, started to roll out of it's place, towards the driveway.

"That is the flight to Tokyo" the woman said. "I'm afraid you're too late!"

Almost like in a trance, I walked over to the glass front, watching the plane as it gathered speed, and slowly took off. Silent tears were running down my cheeks, and I touched my forehead to the cold glass surface.

"Heiji…" I whispered, though I knew that he couldn't hear me.

_Heiji's POV_

I looked out of the window, seeing how Ōsaka got smaller and smaller the higher the plane rose, like a toy city. I didn't really see it, though – all I saw was Kazuha's face in front of me, and I was very aware of the fact that every bit of space I put in between me and my home town now was a step away from her.

My best friend. The only girl I had ever loved. I felt my throat burning.

I closed my eyes, willing myself to breathe, but I only saw the imagine of her kissing Fujiwara in front of my inner eye, as if the scene had burned itself onto the inside of my closed eye lids.

I leaned my forehead against the small plane window, trying to calm myself down, but I didn't seem to be able to will the burning of my throat and eyes away.

"_Time to tell me the truth  
To burden your mouth for what you say  
No pieces of paper in the way  
Cause i cant continue pretending to choose  
These opposite sides on which we fall  
The loving you laters if at all  
No right minds could wrong be this many times_

_I thought I was ready to bleed  
That we'd move from the shadows on the wall  
And stand in the center of it all  
Too late, two choices, to stay or to leave  
Mine was so easy to uncover  
He'd already left with the other  
So I've learned to listen through silence_

_Leave unsaid unspoken  
Eyes wide shut unopened  
You and me always between the lines"_

Sara Bareilles

A.N.: There you have it - Heiji is going to Toyko. This is where the next part of our story starts :-) I hope you're excited! And for all the people who asked for some Shinichi - you are going to get some now :-) I'm looking forward to your reviews!


	17. Chapter 17

A.N.: Hey everyone! I have sad news for you - I'm afraid I won't be able to update for a while. Uni has been catching up with me, and I hardly find any time to write between this amount of work... So, if I manage to update, the better, but if I don't, you know why ;)  
Now, onto the nexr chapter, and into Shinichi's POV.

Chapter 17

_08:46 a.m., Saturday, July 27th, Tokyo, Mouri appartment_

_Shinichi's POV_

I shouldered my bag as I entered the kitchen, a bitter taste on my tongue. Ran was standing at the counter, drying leftover dishes from the last dinner and preparing breakfast.

I watched her for a moment, very aware of the fact that when I now walked out of the door, it might very well have been the last time that I ever saw her. This thought alone made me willing to throw my plans out of the window again, but what choice did I have, really? If I continued to live as Conan, or not at all – to her it would make no difference. I wouldn't be returning to her as Shinichi either way, so I needed to put all my effort in this only choice I had, no matter how dangerous it was.

Ran turned around, finally noticing my presence, and her voice broke me out of my trance.

"Are you already leaving, Conan-Kun?" she asked in surprise, throwing a short look at the clock. "What about breakfast?"

"I don't need any" I answered with a smile. After all, we needed to get Hattori from the airport in about an hour. I was still tempted to just leave him standing there and go through with our plan without him, though. After all, this was still not his battle to fight. But try to explain that to a pig-head like him.

"Oh, I see" Ran sighed. "Well, be sure to eat something at Professor Agasa's before you take off for camping!"

"I will" I promised, keeping my smile steady despite my mood. I had told Ran that I would be off camping with Professor Agasa and the Detective Boys to celebrate the beginning of our summer vacations. It was a pleasant thought, really – I wished the truth was as pleasant, but sadly, it was anything but.

"Alright, take care!" she smiled, and I tried to memorize each and every one of her facial features, trying to take the picture of her smile with me.

"I will" I murmured. "Bye, Ran-nee-san!"

"Bye! Have fun!" she nodded before turning back to the dishes. I took a deep breath before turning my back on her and leaving first the kitchen, then the appartment.

Gladly, it took me only a few minutes to get to Agasa's house. That still left me a few minutes to try to talk the Professor and Haibara into my idea of just leaving Hattori behind. The more I thought about him coming along, the more sick I felt. Hattori would be just the type to get himself into something dangerous, impulsive as he was. I didn't want to be the reason for something happening to him.

But as soon as I had entered the door to Agasa's house, all my ideas were eliminated by one simple sentence of Haibara.

"Hattori-Kun is already here" she said, her voice the mix of boredom and annoyance to which I was used. She held the door open for me to enter the house, but I only stood there, staring at her in shock.

"What?" I asked stupidly, not moving an inch.

"Hattori" Haibara repeated, raising an eyebrow at me as if I had been asking the stupidest of question. "Your detective pal from Ōsaka. Loose mouth, dark skin, Ōsaka-ben."

"I know who he is!" I returned angrily, stepping past her quickly. "I want to know what he is doing here!"

Haibara let the door fall closed behind her, frowning.

"Wasn't he supposed to be coming today anyway?" she shrugged, following me through the corridor. "So what is the big surprise? I mean, I was annoyed as well as he came ringing the doorbell in the middle of the night, but-"

I ditched her explanation as I had finally reached the living room, spotting Professor Agasa sitting on the couch, working on his Netbook.

"What is Hattori already doing here?"I asked him, refraining myself from adding: _Why did you even let him in?_

"I don't know" the Professor sighed, looking up. "I thought you might be able to explain it, you know him better, after all. He suddenly stood in front of the door around midnight, saying he just was in the mood to come earlier, not wanting to explain anything."

I groaned loudly, throwing my bag onto the next free chair. So much to just ignoring his arrival.

"Where is he?" I demanded, looking around for any sign of him.

"Sleeping upstairs in the guest room" Haibara shrugged, plopping down on the couch next to Agasa, watching him wearily.

Without another word, I turned my back to them, hurrying up the stairs. I had never been good at getting this guy, but really, this was a new dimension of mystery to me. Why would he be traveling across the country in the middle of the night when we had agreed that we would be getting him from the airport today? Something seemed off, but maybe that was just my general opinion of not wanting him anywhere close to Tokyo right now.

I bursted into the room without knocking, spotting him still lying in bed, slowly opening his eyes at the sound of the door opening.

"Morning" I said, my ill mood easily to be detacted in my voice, plopping down on a chair at the wall, glaring at him.

Hattori glanced at me for a moment before closing his eyes again and stretching, his expression as sour as mine.

"Geez, what have I done _now_?"

"What are you doing here?" I demanded. "You were supposed to arrive in an hour!"

"I changed my mind" he shrugged, sitting up.

"Care to explain why?"

"Why are you making such a big deal out of it? Let me guess, you were planning on just ditching me, but me being here now makes that difficult. Well, haha." He said drily.

"You didn't answer my question" I returned, not wanting to admit that his guess has been right. "Why have you just randomly decided to fly across the country in the middle of the night? If you just wanted to surprise me and destroy any of my plans, you could have gotten here sooner. Which means something must have happened to let you make such a rash decision. And I want to know what that is."

"Stop analizing me!"Hattori murmured, frowning at me. "Nothing happened, alright? Back off!"

"Fine, if you don't want to talk about what happened, then let's talk about today" I continued, letting loose all my bad mood on him at once. "I still don't want you here."

"Well, I call that bad luck, because I _am_ already here" Hattori answered drily, stretching to grab his bag, rummaging through it.

"This is not your fight, Hattori!" I said firmly, raising my voice. "This whole thing is dangerous, and I'm not going to take you along!"

"That's not up to you to decide!" Hattori snapped, his green eyes glistening sharply as he looked up at me. "You are my friend, and I'm not going to leave you go alone. End of story."

"Why are you so stubborn?" I groaned, glaring at him.

"Well, sorry if I'm annoying you _as well_, but that's how I am. Live with it." He murmured, an bitter edge to his voice which made me frown even more. By now, I was almost sure he was keeping something from me, something that explained both his early arrival and his aggressive mood. But stubborn as he was, I knew he would be getting even more mad if I tried to push things further. So instead, I tried it with sense and logic.

"Hattori, listen, I'm only doing this because I have nothing to lose" I said slowly, chosing my words carefully. "I want my life back, and I have to risk something for that. You, on the other hand… You actually_ have_ something to lose. You have everything to lose. You think I could live with it if something happened to you because of me?"

Hattori was quiet during my speech, pulling out a T-Shirt and a jeans to change into. After another short moment of silence, he finally said.

"Same goes for me. If anything happens to you because I left you to do this alone, I would be blaming myself, too."

"That doesn't change the fact that I have nothing to lose, but you have." I argued.

"What do I have to lose?" he murmured, not looking up at me but out of the window as he spoke.

"Um, _everything_!" I said pointedly, raising an eyebrow at him as I stated the obvious. "Your life, your family, _Kazuha_-"

"I don't have as much to lose as you think" he interrupted me, his expression frozen.

"Are you kidding me?" I demanded. "Think about what it would do to Kazuha if you wouldn't return-"

"_Kazuha_" he interrupted me, a bitter smile appearing on his face while his eyes became… somehow empty. "Believe me, she couldn't care less if I lived or not. So stop talking nonsense, okay?"

I fell silent, just staring at him for a moment before I stated: "So something _did_ happen." He didn't answer, and I continued: "Listen, if you had some fight again with Kazuha, that still doesn't mean it is okay to run into the next bets suicide mission!"

"You don't know what you're talking about!" he returned wildly, raising his voice so suddenly that it took me aback. I could tell I had hit a weak point. "It wasn't just _some fight_, and- you know, this is really none of your business!" he snapped, jumping up and grabbing his clothes tightly. "I'm gonna go change!" he declared, taking off for the door.

"Hattori-" I said loudly, but before I could say anymore, he had already smashed the door shut behind him. "Perfect" I murmured to myself, getting up as well. "Just perfect."

A.N.: Well, well... Tough times for Heiji. Looks like he's getting into fights with everyone ;) Thoughts?


	18. Chapter 18

A.N.: Hey, everyone! I'm so sorry for the long wait - I really had so much to do during the last couple of months, I felt like I had no time to breathe, let alone find the inspiration to write. But I finished all my exams now, and had some time to clear my head, and now I'm back :-) I know this is not the most ideal chapter to return with after such a long time, seeing as it is a filler, but I promise I'm gonna do my best ;) Please have some patience with me and enjoy it!

Chapter 18

_09:17 a.m., Saturday, July 27th, Tokyo, Mouri appartment_

_Ran's POV_

I sat at the breakfast table alone, nipping on my tea as I was indulged in the newspaper. There was a sale at one of my favourite shops today. Maybe I would call Sonoko to go shopping with me. After all, I didn't have much to do today – Conan was gone, and Dad surely wouldn't be up until noon, knowing him.

But my plans were thrown out of the window as the door bell rang only a minute later. I fowned, pushing the paper aside as I got up. Who would be ringing this early on a Saturday morning? Had Conan forgotten something? But he had a house key, didn't he?

I took slow steps towards the door, carefully peeking through the little watch hole. With a gasp of surprise, I recognized a familiar face. I tore the door open, looking at the girl in front of me in shock.

"Kazuha?" I called. „What are you doing here?"

She looked up at me, hesitating, as if she wasn't quite sure what to answer. She didn't look good, I noticed – there were dark rings under her eyes, indicating that she hadn't slept a lot the past night, if at all. All in all, she looked pale, and empty. It made me feel a rush of worry for her.

"Kazuha-Chan" I murmured gently. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Is Heiji here?" she asked quietly, her voice thin.

"Heiji?" I returned in confusion. „No, he's not. Why should he?"

„Well, he told his mother that he was here to visit Kudou, and I thought – we'll, if Kudou is in the city, you might know where he and Heiji went-"

"W-wait!" I said forcefully, feeling my head spinning at her rush of information. "Shinichi is _definetely_ not in Tokyo. I would know, okay?"

"But he said-" Kazuha began, but I cut her off quickly.

"He must have lied" I shrugged, stepping aside to let her come in. "Why don't you just call him and ask? I'm sure there is a simple explanation to all of-"

"Don't you get it!" she answered desperately, gripping my elbow. "That's the problem! He won't take the call if he sees that it's me! He is running away from _me_!"

"What?" I asked, not understanding what she was trying to say.

"Oh, Ran!" she murmured, her voice shaking slightly. "I made a mistake. A _bad one_."

"You know what" I murmured, putting an arm around her to lead her into the flat. "Start from the beginning."

_09:21 a.m., Saturday, July 27th, Tokyo, Agasa's house_

_Shinichi's POV_

"I don't get what the big deal is, Kudou" Haibara shrugged, taking a sip of her water. "After all, he could be useful for us. He is the only one above the height of 1,50 m out of the three of us, after all. And you were the one who was so eager on _doing something_, remember?"

"I still am" I groaned. "I just don't want to take Hattori along, that's all!"

"I'm sorry, but I have to side with Ai and Hattori" Professor Agasa spoke up, sitting down at the kitchen table next to me. "This whole thing is dangerous enough as it is, and Hattori can only improve your chances!"

"Don't be so quick to say that" I said darkly.

"Anyways, you know what kind of pig-head he is" Haibara stated. "He's just as stubborn as you. He won't back out!"

"Don't mix me with him!" I snapped.

"Exactly" Heiji's voice came from behind me. „Kudou and I are not alike at all. He just wishes we were." I turned around to glare at him as he came down the stairs, sitting down at the table next to Agasa. "So, I'm ready to go. What's the plan?"

"We'll make sure the headquarter is empty, get in, search for the antidote, get out before they come back!" Haibara replied drily.

"I could have guessed that much" Hattori rolled his eyes. "I want details!"

"We know around which times they always leave the house" Professor Agasa started to explain. "Usually, they never return for a few hours if they once left, and we'll just have to speculate on that. We watched them for quite a few weeks now – we are quite sure we know where which room is, and where we have to search. You, Ai and Shinichi are going inside, and I'll wait outside in the car. We will communicate by a head set I especially created for this occasion – it will not only let me hear what you say and answer you, but it will also give me information about where exactly in the house you are. I will warn you as soon as someone comes back, and which door you'd best escape through."

"So far, so good" Hattori nodded. "But how do we get in? I'm sure they do have some kind of alarm system, don't they?"

"Really? We hadn't thought of that before. We were just about to break the door down and see what happens" I replied sarcastically.

"You can be a jerk as much as you want to, you won't get rid of me" Hattori informed me. I just rolled my eyes.

"Of course they have an alarm system" Professor Agasa answered Hattori's question. „It works through finger prints of the members of their organization. But we were so lucky as to have come in possession of the finger prints of a member called "Vodga" – we copied the data and will use it to get in. If everything works, the alarm system should let us through."

"That sounds good" Hattori nodded. "So, how about we start? I didn't come here to relax, I'd prefer we'd get going!"

"Sounds good to me" Haibara nodded, keeping me from shooting anything nasty at him. "They'll be leaving soon, and we don't want to loose any time, do we?"

"True" Professor Agasa nodded, getting up. "Let's get the car ready, shall we?"

I sighed deeply before nodding. I was starting to feel a slight headache.

A.N.: Reviews would be heaven. If you want to read something more from me, I uploaded a short story for Hana Yori Dango some time ago - please read it if you have the time :-)


	19. Chapter 19

A.N.: Hey everyone! Thanks for all the reviews, so glad that you are still with me XD Now, onto the next chapter!

Chapter 19

_09:33 a.m., Saturday, July 27th, Tokyo, Mouri appartment_

_Ran's POV_

„…So that's what happened?" I murmured as Kazuha had finished briefing me into the past happenings concerning her and Heiji. "That's tough."

"I know" Kazuha sniffed, wiping away the tears that had slipped while she had talked. "I'm a terrible person. I can't even blame Heiji for hating me."

"I don't think he hates you" I tried to reassure her. "You've been friends for too long – he can't hate you because of what happened in one week."

"Well, how would _you_ feel if it was you and Kudou?" she challenged.

"Shinichi and I are different" I answered immediately. "We've been apart for so long and you two have always been right in front of each other. You can't compare that. I understand you, it has to be frustrating to be around him every day and not move forward an inch-"

"But it turns out it was my own stupidity, right?" Kazuha interrupted me. "You and Kudou have been more sincere with your feelings even though you have been apart. Me and Heiji – I mean, we had all the time in the world, and we were just too stupid to talk to each other! If I had said anything instead of just moving on to the next guy, none of this would have happened. You wouldn't have done anything like this, would you?"

I spared her an answer. I couldn't even begin to imagine dating anyone else but Shinichi… It would make no sense. But if I said that out loud, Kazuha would be feeling even worse.

"Well, you can't change anything that happened anymore" I said instead. "Maybe we should just concentrate on making it right again."

"That's easier said than done" Kazuha sighed. "I mean, he won't talk to me. He won't pick up the phone when I call him, and the only clue I have to where he might be is what he said to his mother! Ran, are you sure Kudou is not…?" she asked tentatively.

„Very sure" I returned firmly. „ Shinichi would have told me if he was in Tokyo."

"But can't you just call him or something, just to make sure?" Kazuha pleaded, looking at me with teary eyes. "I mean, it's the only clue I have!"

I sighed, observing her face for a moment. I was pretty sure that Shinichi could not be in Tokyo, or at least I wanted to believe that he would have called me of he was. But maybe, he would know where Heiji really was, and give us a tip. After all, he and Heiji were good friends, weren't they? It was worth a try…

"Alright" I nodded at last, standing up to get my phone. "I will call him."

"Thank you, Ran!" Kazuha sighed in relief, flashing me a greatful smile.

_Same time, Tokyo, Agasa's House_

_Shinichi's POV_

As we were packing up the car, almost ready to leave, I had already resigned. I knew something must be up with Heiji, though I didn't know what exactly had happened to make him that radical. All I knew was that I had been overruled and that I couldn't keep him from risking his life along with me.

My thoughts were interrupted by my phone buzzing. I frowned as I took it out, glancing at the display. It was Ran.

My stomach sank, and I glanced around, seeing that the others were all busy packing the car. Quietly, I took the few steps back into the house, taking the call along the way.

After all, this may very well be the last opportunity to speak to Ran as Shinichi.

"Hi Ran" I said, trying to make my voice sound casual. "What's up? Why are you calling me?"

"Shinichi" Ran breathed, her voice gentle. I closed my eyes for a moment, all my senses concentrating on her voice, trying to enclose it in my memory. "I wanted… to ask you something" she continued hesitantly.

"Shoot" I returned, opening my eyes again in curiousity.

"Kazuha… she is here right now" Ran started to explain, making me frown even more in surprise. "She and Heiji obviously had a fight and he took off somewhere and… well, Kazuha is searching for him, and he apparently said he was with you in Tokyo."

Ran made a pause to give me the opportunity to answer, but my mind was working to fast to give me the chance to say anything. So I had been right. Something had happened with Hattori and Kazuha, and he was running away from it.

"Shinichi?" Ran asked quietly. „Have you heard me?"

„Yes, I have" I said quickly.

"Well, is Heiji with you? Are you in Tokyo?" she asked, suppressing the emotion in her voice, but I could still detect it. I knew her too well.

"I'm not in Tokyo" I lied. „And I'm not with Hattori, either. Actually, I haven't talked to him for about a week. I'm sorry, I can't be much of a help."

As soon as I had said the words, I wondered of it was the right thing to do. Maybe, if I made Hattori talk to Kazuha, he would cool off, and I would be able to convince him to stay out of this whole thing… But as soon as I thought it, I knew it made no sense. Hattori was too stubborn. He would probably be even more firm on going with me if he knew Kazuha was after him; maybe he would do something stupid if he knew. It would probably cloud his mind, and that was dangerous, considering the situation.

It was better to keep things to myself, probably.

"I thought so" Ran sighed. "I told Kazuha that you wouldn't be in Tokyo, but she still insisted on me calling and checking."

"It's alright, I understand" I answered, just as Hattori called from outside: "Kudou, where are you? We are ready to go!"

I flinched, ready to slap Hattori senseless.

"Wait" Ran murmured, alerted. "Wasn't that Heiji's voice? You told me he wasn't with you!"

"You – you must have misheard" I stuttered. "That wasn't Hattori, that was-"

But I was interrupted by Professor Agasa calling: "Shinichi! Where are you?"

"That was Professor Agasa!" Ran called on the other end of the line, her voice angry. "You lied! You ARE in Tokyo!"

"I'm not!" I said panicky, running my fingers through my hair in frustration. Why did everything have to go wrong? "Listen, Ran – I – I need to go now. I'll call you later, okay?"

"SHINICHI!" she called, but I still ended the call.

Damn it. This was bad.

_Same time, Tokyo, Mouri appartment_

_Ran's POV_

„SHINICHI!" I called, but he had already hung up. „Damn it!" I cursed. „How can he lie to me like that? Wait till I get him in between my fingers!"

„So, it's true?" Kazuha asked incredulous. „Heiji is with Kudou here in Tokyo?"

"Yes" I nodded, grabbing my keys and my jacket. "And we are going to go meet them now!"

A.N.: Duduuuummm ;-) Thoughts? So excited to hear what you think! ^^


	20. Chapter 20

A.N.: Alright, here we are with the next chapter :-) They are taking off to their mission... It's becoming exciting ;)

Chapter 20

_09:47 a.m., Saturday, July 27th, Tokyo, Agasa's house_

_Heiji's POV_

„There you are" I sighed as Kudou (or should I say Conan-Kun?) finally left the house to join us by the car. "Still trying to find a way to get rid of me?"

Instead of answering, he just looked up at me, studying my face with a frown on his own. It seemed as if he was searching for something, but I wasn't sure what exactly that was. His stare made me uncomfortable, so I looked away.

"So, are we ready to go now?" I asked instead.

„Yes" Kudou sighed, averting his eyes from me again, much to my relief. "Let's get this thing over with already."

"Exactly my opinion" Haibara agreed. „Let's go!"

So we all got into the black Toyota Professor Agasa had rented for the occasion – his yellow Beetle would just have been too suspicious to anyone who happened to be observing us. Haibara got into the shot seat next to the Professor, and Kudou and I got into the back seat.

I tried hard to not think of anything as the Professor started the car and got out of the drive way. Above all not of a certain girl, and of what Kudou had said this morning.

_Think of what it would do to Kazuha if anything happened to you!_

How would she feel if she heard that I had been hurt, or maybe even worse? Would she even care? Would her bad conscience haunt her? Would she _miss me?_ Probably not. And if so, she'd deserve the pain, I decided.

Just as that thought crossed my mind, I looked outside of the car window, and my heart stopped. Directly in front of me, I spotted Kazuha, turning around the corner towards a house in the neighboorhood with Ran. I blinked, and in that moment we speeded past them, and they were gone.

I turned around, looking out of the rear window, but saw no one.

"Hattori?" Kudou asked, looking at me with a frown. „What's up?"

„I… just thought I saw… no one" I murmured, turning my head back forward. "I must have been hallucinating."

_Same time, Tokyo, at the entrance of the Kudou mansion_

_Kazuha's POV_

I stood and stared after the black Toyota as it speeded out of my sight. Was I already seeing things, or had Heiji been sitting in that car?

"Kazuha?" Ran asked, looking at me in confusion. "What's up?"

"Kudou-Kun, or this Professor Agasa… Does one of them drive a black Toyota?" I asked quietly.

"No" Ran shook her head. „Shinichi doesn't drive yet, and Professor Agasa drives a yellow Beetle."

"I must be getting paranoid" I shrugged, following her down the way to the entrance door of Kudou's house. I looked up at the drawn blinds and the all in all deserted appearance of the house. "No one seems to be here." I noted.

"He is here" Ran said firmly. „And if he's not here, he is at Agasa's. He's just trying to fool us, that jerk!" With that, she drew out some keys and took fast steps towards the front door, unlocking it quickly before entering the house, leaving the door open for me to follow. But before I had even taken one step, I heard her already scream: "SHINICHI KUDOU! WHERE ARE YOU? GET YOUR BUTT OUT HERE! _NOW!"_

I sighed, wondering if it really had been the right decision to involve Ran and Kudou-Kun into this. We didn't want another fight, did we?

Ran was running up the stairs as I finally entered the corridor. I looked around – there were no shoes or anything to be seen in the entrance way. The house looked positively deserted.

"Ran!" I called. "I really don't think they are here!"

I got no answer, so I leaned against a wall, waiting for her to come to the same conclusion as me. Slowly, I really wondered if I shouldn't have stayed at home. It was obvious Heiji didn't want to see me – wouldn't it be better to leave him alone for a while?

I heard footsteps again, and a moment later Ran turned up again at the top of the stairs.

"He was here!" she groaned as she descended the stairs so quickly that I was afraid she would stumble any moment and fall, but gladly, she didn't. "Last weekend I was here to clean the house for him, because who else is there to take care of it, and I KNOW where I put everything! Some clothes are missing! He WAS here!"

"But he's not now, is he?" I murmured. "So what are we going to do?"

"Check Agasa's" she shrugged, walking past me out of the house again.

_09:55 a.m., Saturday, July 27th, Tokyo, in front of the headquarters of the black organization_

_Shinichi's POV_

We arrived just in time to see Gin and Vodga leave the headquarters. We were waiting in our usual, half hidden parking spot around the corner, not drawing any attention to us as we wartched them lock the door behind them and getting into their car, taking off.

"Wow, they are not very smart, are they?" Hattori murmured as he looked after their car. "Here we are, obviously observing them, and they don't have a clue!"

"They don't expect anyone to be observing them" Haibara said, her voice tense. "For all they know, nobody has the slightest idea of where their headquarters is."

"Well, who would start searching here?" Hattori agreed, gesturing around to the street we were in. "This is your usual neighbourhood! There's a school around the corner! Who would expect a super evil criminal organization to set their headquarter here?"

"What did you expect?" I murmured sarcastically. "An old factory hall?"

"Well… Yes" he shrugged. "Something like that, at least. Something cool."

"Enough talk now!" Haibara hissed. "We've got to get going, before they return!"

"Okay, okay" Hattori groaned, rolling his eyes. "Just give out those headsets or whatever it is and let's get going, shall we?"

"True" Agasa nodded, handing Haibara a bag. She took the said headphones out of it, handing one each to me and to Hattori while Professor Agasa started his netbook. We adjusted the technical devices with the Professor's instruction and waited for his okay.

Then, we got out of the car, and crossed the street to get the house.

A.N.: ... I know, I know, I'm the master of evil cliffhangers, and I accept the title :-P Scream at me if you like, but be sure to review ;) By the way, I won't be able to update for a week or two... I'm on vacation 3 But I'll be back afterwards, promise ^^


	21. Chapter 21

A.N.: Hey, everyone! I'm back from holidays, and I hope I'll be able to update regularly now before Uni gets the best of me again ^^' Be patient with me. Now, onto the next chapter...

Chapter 21

_09:59 a.m., Saturday, July 27th, Tokyo, at the headquarters of the black organization_

_Shinichi's POV_

We crossed the street to get to the house we had just seen Jin and Vodga leave. I looked down the street anxiousy for any sign of them returning, but it was deserted. The only living creature around was a black cat running through a garden fence. I took a deep breath, focusing my attention on the front door we had just reached.

We stopped, and Haibara quickly pulled a small box out of her pocket, not looking unlike a ring case. But when she opened it, there was no shining jewel inside – instead, a small transparent lense, not unlike a contact lense, was to be seen.

The fingerprint of Vodga.

Haibara gently picked up the lense with the tip of her finger, looking up to the alarm system.

"Can someone reach me a hand?" she asked, nodding to the small display. "I can't reach it!"

Hattori sighed, grabbing her at the hip and lifting her like the child she was at the moment.

"And here I thought I wasn't needed" he hissed towards me. I ignored him, only watching nervously how Haibara gently touched the display with her covered finger.

"What do we do if it doesn't work?" Hattori whispered, the tension obvious in his voice as well now.

"Run for our life" I murmured, praying that this wouldn't be the case.

Gladly, it wasn't – as soon as Ai's finger touched the display, the system cheeped pleasantly and the door opened with one quick movement. It seemed like all of us let out a breath of relief at the same time, and Hattori let Haibara down again.

"So far, so good" I murmured. "We are going inside now" I spoke into the microphone of my headset for the Professor to hear. He didn't answer, but I didn't think anything of it. "Come on!" I nodded to Hattori and Haibara before going in first.

_Same time, in the car in front of the house_

_Agasa's POV_

"Shinichi?" I called, slowly panicking. "Can you hear me? ANSWER!"

But no one of the three repied – instead, I watched them entering the house quietly, closing the door behind them.

"Damn!" I groaned, disconnecting my microphone from the headset to take a look at it. I couldn't understand why it wouldn't work, when it had worked this morning as I tested it!

"Okay, let's spit up" I heard Shinichi say to the other two inside the house. "Haibara, you go and search their computer for any kind of information. Hattori, you go and search their laboratory. I'm going through the files they keep in their office."

"Okay, how is this poison of yours called again?" I heard Hattori ask.

"_APTX 4869!"_ Shinichi and Ai hissed, obviously annoyed with him.

"Well, how is one supposed to remember such a name?" Hattori groaned. "Alright, let's get going!"

I sighed, looking down the street. There was no sign of anyone of the organization returning yet, but still, at this rate, with a broken microphone, I wouldn't be able to warn them.

I shot a quick look at my laptop, only to see that the three of them had separated just in the planned way. I sighed before quickly setting the laptop down on the seat next to me and starting the car. I remembered to still have a spare microphone at home, and the drive wouldn't take long. With a little luck, I would be able to get hold of the thing before anyone would notice me gone.

_10:04 a.m., Saturday, July 27th, Tokyo, at Agasa's house_

_Ran's POV_

"I can't believe it!" I swore loudy as I knocked once more at Professor Agasa's door, but once again, no sound was to be heard from inside. "I swear, they fled as soon as I called! This jerk, if I get him in between my fingers…"

"So, what are we going to do now?" Kazuha asked. "Where could they be?"

"If I knew where Shinichi always takes off to, my life would be a hell easier" I murmured, plopping down at the front steps. "But no, he is secretive as aways, never teing me a thing… I'm sick of it, really!"

"He probably has a reason" Kazuha sighed, sitting down next to me.

"If he has, he could tell me!" I groaned.

"Don't talk yourself into anger" Kazuha murmured, and the sadness in her voice made me ook up at her. "It will make you think, do and say stupid things. If I had just believed in Heiji a little more, none of this would have happened. So do me a favor and don't stop believing in Kudou-Kun."

I was silent after that, just staring at my hands, not sure what to respond. I only looked up again when I heard the sound of a car speeding down the road – way too fast, as I might mention. I frowned even more as the car stopped in front of Professor Agasa's house. It was an unfamiliar car to me – a black Toyota, looking rather expensive and new.

"That's the car!" Kazuha breathed, staring as if she had seen a ghost.

"What car?" I asked in confusion.

"The one I have seen Heiji in earlier!" she said, and as soon as the words were out, the door of the drivers seat opened and Professor Agasa got out, seeming quite in a hurry. He cosed the door behind him, and walked quickly towards the house, not reaizing our presence until he was only a few feet away from us. When he did look up at us though, he froze immediately, looking shocked to see us.

"Oh shit" he murmured to himself, as I slowly raised myself into a standing position, still staring at him.

"I will only ask once" I said quietly, purposefully making my voice sound dangerous. I was satisfied when I saw the Professor gulp in nervousness. "Where are Shinichi and Heiji?"

He only stared at us, not answering.

A.N.: Waiting for your reviews ^^


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